Azumanga Daioh in Space: Special Edition
by X to the Zoltan
Summary: I hit a homerun with this one! See, it's Azumanga Daioh and... um, it's in space! You know, on second thought...
1. Stargazing

_"__Wit lies in recognizing the resemblance among things which differ and the difference between things which are alike."_ --Madame de Stael

_"And it's NOT just a retelling!"_ –me, five seconds ago

* * *

**01: Stargazing**

A harsh, baking wind rasped over Owen. To feel it, one would never guess that Tatooine's baleful twin suns had already fled over the horizon, leaving the sky a pleasant, dusky purple. In just an hour, the wasteland would be every bit as lethal for its frigidity as the blistering sunlight had been during the day.

This didn't concern him much, though his wife, Beru, would probably come calling him inside pretty soon. Owen stared into the sky through a pair of macrobinoculars even older than _he_ was (quite an achievement, he'd be the first to admit.) "It could be…" he muttered uncertainly, fiddling with the focus. "Chiyo! Hey, Chiyo, c'mere and take a look at this!"

His niece didn't respond immediately. After a few seconds, though, he could clearly hear Beru saying, "You might as well go see what that idiot wants. I'll watch the food, you go on ahead." He smiled and sighed in good-natured disgruntlement. Ungrateful woman…

"Coming Uncle Owen!" Chiyo called brightly.

There was almost no family resemblance between the two. Where Owen was tall, dark and thickly built, she was small, fair and delicate. Though almost everyone on Tatooine had coarse black hair, hers was fine, a light orange-red, fluttering behind her in pigtails. She very obviously took after Owen's late brother-in-law.

"Here," Owen handed her the binoculars and pointed to a patch of sky. "Take a look over there."

"What am I looking for?" she asked, adjusting them to fit her face.

"You'll know it when you see it," her uncle replied, almost gleefully.

"I think I…" Chiyo stared for a few seconds. "Those green flashes?"

"Yeah, that's it. Doesn't it look like a battle?"

"I guess…" she lowered the macrobinoculars. "But why would anybody fight over Tatooine? It's probably auroras."

"But the auroras aren't due for another month."

"They come early sometimes. They did last year, remember?"

"You're no fun,' Owen said, swatting her head gently. "Where's your sense of adventure, eh? It's all your Aunt's fault."

"Sorry, but-" Chiyo started to respond, but something fell from the sky a few miles distant and made landfall with a dull thunderclap. "Of course, I, uh, I could be wrong…"

"What the hell?" Owen was suddenly dead serious. He snatched the macrobinoculars back and tried to focus on the landing site. "What…? That's not far away! We should go check it out!"

"We--?" Chiyo yelped as Owen grabbed her arm.

"C'mon!"

* * *

The landspeeder ride was only four minutes, but it seemed to take hours. By the time they arrived, a small cluster of speeders had already gathered, their owners standing around them and talking loudly. The whatever-it-was was only visible as a pillar of smoke in the near distance.

Chiyo hopped out as soon as they came to a stop, shivering in the suddenly icy air. The sky had faded to midnight blue and their breath came as little clouds. The desert didn't take very long to shift gears.

"It's Lars!" somebody called, and the other moisture farmers gathered around them. "Hey, Owen, Chiyo! How's it goin'?"

"What's going on?" Owen asked, his voice steely. Chiyo glanced at her uncle in surprise; this was a side of him she rarely saw.

"We're afraid to go near it," another said. Owen helped himself to the man's binoculars (much nicer than his own) and turned towards the crash site as he kept talking. "I mean, what if it's an alien invasion or radioactive or an unexploded torpedo or full of the plague or…"

"You spineless _idiots_!" Owen suddenly barked. "That's a standard escape pod! Somebody could be dying in there!"

He carelessly tossed the expensive binoculars aside and started towards the pod. Chiyo looked hopefully around at the other farmers, then followed when she saw nobody else would come. Recounting the night later, many of them admitted that her look had shamed them more than any amount of scorn from her uncle.

The controls were in a language that neither recognized, but Chiyo only took a few seconds to figure them out. The hatch hissed open, loosing a blast of over-warm air into the frozen night. Owen grimaced slightly; he knew the smell of a blaster wound when he caught it.

There was only one passenger. A young woman was sprawled on the floor, dressed in some kind of uniform, though it was hard to tell, caked in blood and charred as it was. She'd been shot not once, but twice, and then been banged up further in the pod's botched landing.

"Hey," Owen said softly, kneeling beside her. "You awake?"

"Ugh…!" She weakly gripped his sleeve and implored, "Kenobi…"

"Listen, I'm gonna get you some help, and—" he said, starting to take a hold of her shoulders, but she swatted his hands away with surprising strength and insisted, "Kenobi!"

"Right," Owen replied, "Kenobi, sure thing. Now are you gonna let me help you or what?"

By way of a response, she finally passed out. Chiyo tugged on Owen's sleeve. "I don't think anything's broken," she said. "We can probably move her."

"Thanks…" the woman was surprisingly heavy; she was probably wearing body armor of some kind. After a little arranging, he was able to carry her out into the cold night, under the scrutiny of their fellow moisture farmers. "Go home!" he snarled.

If anything, the ride back was even longer than before. Owen called ahead and let his wife know they were coming back with an injured person. He winced at the sound of their kitchen table being cleared in one sweep as he signed off.

"What _happened _to her?" Chiyo asked, gently wiping the woman's face clean of blood. She had a sharp, honest face, partially hidden by jagged bangs. "What kind of people would do this?"

"I don't know, Chiyo."

Beru was waiting outside for them, her eyes hard and businesslike. Their guest was carted in without ado and stretched out on the table. Beru put a hand on the collar of the woman's uniform, but then turned a scalding look on her husband.

"Oh. Right," he said diffidently, leaving the room. He heard his wife order, "Chiyo, run me some cold water, as much as you can get." It was going to be a long night.

* * *

Some three hours later, they had their guest situated as well as could be hoped and a bone-weary Chiyo was ordered to bed. As tired as she was, though, she just couldn't fall asleep, and overheard her caregivers speaking thus:

"Who could be so barbaric?" Beru sighed. "That poor woman. Chiyo shouldn't have to see things like that."

"Well," she heard Owen sit down heavily. "We can't shelter her forever…"

"I wish you wouldn't try to push her out the door, though."

A slight pause. "What are you talking about?"

"You're always turning her head with your yapping about adventure and other worlds… you know what happened to her father. Are you _trying _to-?"

"You've got that a little backwards. What do you think got me so excited about space? She's doing it all on her own… you know what Chiyo told me she wants to do? She wants to join the crew of one of those Deep Space Explorers and see the galaxy."

"She… since when…?"

"Where have you _been?_ Good God!You know those correspondence courses she's been taking?"

"From the Imperial Academy of Coruscant?"

"Yeah. Did you know that she's already three-quarters of the way to a degree?"

"What?"

Hm. Now that she thought about it, Chiyo hadn't told her Aunt much about her academic career…

"A professor there, Kurosawa, she's been paying for Chiyo's textbooks for a year or so now. Everybody's shocked that they're being outdone by a thirteen-year-old moisture farmer studying in her spare time. They've even been talking about letting her go to the Academy next y—"

"But she's just a baby!"

"She's old enough. Don't you want her to have a better life than _this_? We should really consider letting her go."

"To Coruscant? But she'll be shot!"

"You and I both know that's not fair. Listen, you're still worked up from dealing with our guest over there… we'll talk this over some other time, all right?"

Chiyo rolled over and sighed. She hated overhearing them talk about her, especially when they brought up her father like that. But what could she do? In time, the young prodigy drifted into an uneasy sleep, filled with visions of shadowy figures leaping about with glowing blades under a strange night sky.


	2. Boarding Action

**02: Boarding Action**

Princess Kaori, light of the Rebellion, stood alone in her stateroom, watching the desert planet turning serenely far below. Like many inspiring leaders, she knew how to present a façade of invincibility, but for now it had fallen. "It's hard to believe we're so close," she said sadly, resting her fingers on the pane. "You've probably forgotten all about me… but still, I wish I could see you again."

Her vessel, the _Lightning_, was only pausing to recharge her solar cells before setting out on the next leg of their journey. She was a beautiful ship, with a sleek, katana-shaped hull and sweeping wings, but hardly one worthy of a Princess. Perhaps that's why Kaori liked it so much.

Kaori gave a start and composed herself as the stateroom door hissed open behind her. Only two people on the ship were allowed to enter unannounced; one would be Captain Antilles, and the other would be…

"Oh, Ms. Kagura!" she greeted the woman's reflection warmly. "Come in."

"P-- Kaorin," the other replied uncomfortably. Kagura was the captain of her personal guard, and looked the part. Lean but strongly built, tough but with a certain kindness as well, she had a soldierly charisma that Kaori sometimes envied. When the Princess said 'jump,' the men asked, 'how high?' When Kagura said 'jump,' they gave themselves concussions on the ceiling.

The only problem was that she was ever conscious of the gulf between them, never able to settle down in the presence of her old friend. Perhaps it was something that just couldn't be helped. "Is… is something wrong?" Kagura asked.

"Hm?" So she was that easy to read? While it would be nice to unburden, alas, duty came first. "No. No, nothing. Listen, I need you to do something for me."

"Anything."

Kaori produced a small disk and handed it to the other woman. "If anything goes wrong during this mission, at this stop or the next one, I want you to go down to Tatooine and give this to a man named Kenobi. And…" she hesitated, then also handed the soldier a tiny sealed envelope. "And give this to his apprentice."

"But I'd have to leave…" Kagura started to protest, then shook her head sharply. "Right. You can count on me." Actually, she wasn't sure how she'd manage to find this Kenobi, but since the Princess wasn't telling her, she figured she was on her own.

"I knew I could," Kaori acknowledged, and with a sudden smile, her whole manner changed. "So are you due anywhere, or do you have time for a drink?"

"Well," Kagura replied, smiling back, "If the Princess has time... huh? The ship just moved! What--?" The deck lurched under their feet with an ominous ringing sound, knocking Kaori to her knees. Kagura moved to help her up, but she was already yelling, "Go!"

The "battle" that Owen had strained to see through his aged macrobinoculars was really more of a short chase and an even shorter beatdown. A Star Destroyer, the aptly named _Implacable_, appeared from hyperspace right on top of them, her batteries already pouring ravening beams into space.

The _Lightning's _engines roared to life _much _faster than was healthy for them, but it was a doomed effort. The brave little blockade runner's shields were pummeled into nothingness almost instantly, and vicious tractor beams latched on to her with enough force to crumple her slender frame.

The _Implacable _towed her in, disdainful of the tiny green bolts her prey frantically spat. Her great turbolasers worked with surgical precision, blasting away weapons emplacements and communication equipment, and only when the smaller vessel was well and truly defanged was she drawn into the warship's cavernous docking bay.

With that, the easy part was over. Princess Kaori's personal guard gathered at the connection point, a heavily armored door at the end of a long, ribbed corridor, and took positions along its length. Kagura didn't bother giving a flowery, dramatic speech; they knew what was going on and that she was behind them.

She wouldn't have had time to anyway--everything was happening _way _too fast. One instant, the door was there, laser sights dancing over it like evil fireflies, the next it was skidding down the corridor at the head of a terrible concussion. The explosion's roar had barely faded from their ears before stormtroopers poured through and they were thrust into furious combat.

For well on ten minutes, the corridor became a maze of green light choked with ozone-reeking smoke. The defenders fought bravely, littering the narrow floor with armored corpses, but the tide was sorely against them. Slowly, man by hard-fighting man, they were torn from their positions and cast lifeless to the ground.

It was unfortunate, but the battle's fury made Kagura forget all about the innocuous little disk in her pocket. Her rifle clicked dry and she dropped it, drawing her sidearms and walking brazenly into the corridor, spraying bolts into the emerging troopers. For about five seconds it seemed that she was invincible… then a bolt tore through her leg and she fell, blasters skittering across the deck.

Now unopposed, the stormtroopers marched briskly through, contemptuous of the twenty yards so many of their comrades had died for. As the smoke started to clear, _he _arrived. That ebon-armored and sable-cloaked monster, living symbol of the Empire's terror, Dark Lord of the Sith… _Darth Nochichi!_

(You knew it to be true.)

Sure, he looked kind of silly, what with his ovoid body, ropy arms, stubby, tapered legs and sinister, almond-shaped eyes--but there in the flesh, he seemed like an impossible nightmare made real. His odd appearance had made him an easy target for political cartoonists, but their work would have been much funnier if the artists didn't always mysteriously disappear soon after seeing print.

So go ahead, laugh! Laugh at him! See what it gets you!

Darth Nochichi drifted into the corridor, flanked by stormtroopers, and surveyed the scene of carnage dispassionately. "**Find me a survivor,**" he ordered in his chilling, filtered voice.

Thus Kagura was hauled to her feet by two troopers and confronted the Sith Lord. "I don't know what the hell you think you're doing!" she snapped, unimpressed, "We're on a diplo—" Nochichi grabbed her by her throat and hauled her into the air. _Hey! _she thought inanely, _How's he doing that without fingers?_

"**Where are the plans?**" he demanded.

"Plans? What are you--?"

"**Do not toy with me. This is no diplomatic mission. Where. Are. The. Plans?**" With each gritted word, his grip tightened. Kagura saw spots dancing before her eyes, but didn't yield. "I don't know what you're talking about…!" she growled defiantly.

Darth Nochichi carelessly tossed her aside. She staggered against the wall, started to rise—and one of the troopers shot her in the stomach. Kagura crumpled to the ground and lay very still as Nochichi barked, "**Search everywhere! Find those plans if you have to tear this ship apart!**"

"Sir!" The stormtroopers spread out and the halls rang with shouted orders, the bray of blasters and the clatter of armored boots. In short time, Kagura found herself alone among the fallen defenders. It would have been safe to assume that she was dead, but they had underestimated her doughtiness… and the ablative vest under her jacket.

Now that she had the time, she felt a little shaken- and something was biting into her thigh. Of all the stupid… had she landed on her keys? It took her a moment to remember the disk and her mission from Kaori.

Kagura considered her situation. _Hmm… I'm gut-shot, oxygen deprived, my leg doesn't work and the ship is full of stormtroopers. _She hauled herself to her hands and knees; there'd never been any question of just lying there and dying. _It's always something…_

Not long after, one of the _Lightning_'s escape pods launched, violently skipping off the docking bay wall and spiraling wildly towards the planet below. One of the Imperial gunners took a few half-hearted shots at it, but there obviously wasn't anybody at the controls.

"Don't waste the power," his officer advised. "It was probably a malfunction."

This lowly gunnery sergeant never found out that his prudence had doomed the Empire.


	3. Kagura's Awakening

**03: Kagura's Awakening**

Sand slashed through the bitterly cold air, working its way into the joints of the stormtrooper commander's armor and darkening his already sour mood further. His men were spread out on the dunes around him, pristine armor gleaming in the light of three moons. A few troopers from the local garrison were also present in their more weathered gear and brown cloaks, a few forming a perimeter about the crash site astride massive dewbacks.

"Useless gits," he muttered. Those men had "gone native," and it showed in their unprofessional bearing.

"Sir!" a technician yelled as he emerged from the still-smoking pod. "Blood matches. It's the missing woman from the crew manifest."

"Just great," the commander sighed, "So now these shit-kicking moisture farmers've got a hold of her. We'll have to search homestead by homestead."

"We have a map at the precinct office," one of the locals offered.

"Just how I wanted to spend my day…"

* * *

Kagura clambered to wakefulness through a miserable tan fog. Every inch of her hurt like nothing else, and it was so… so… _bright_. She sat up slowly, pressing the heel of a hand against her eye. Rough blankets fell away, revealing that she had been bandaged by someone who knew what they were doing.

Still reeling, she swung her legs over the edge of her pallet and started to rise, but a white-hot bolt of pain shot through her thigh and put an end to _that _idea. Her stomach didn't feel much better. Moving around was certainly going to be a chore.

Kagura laid back and took stock of her surroundings. It was a small, simple room, lit impressively by just a few tiny windows near the ceiling. Her possessions were arrayed on a small table next to her bed; thankfully, the disk was among them. On the wall next to it was a pair of brown drawstring pants, a loose white shirt and a crutch.

Rising more carefully, she dressed herself and took hold of the crutch. It was time to meet her captors. The room's door swung easily aside, admitting her into what looked like a kitchen, similarly Spartan in layout. A girl stood before the stove, just a few inches too short to comfortably preside over the bubbling pot atop it. She held a telephone (or whatever the Tatooinian equivalent would be) between her shoulder and ear.

"I'm sorry I couldn't make it to the Toshi station with you and Miru," she was saying, "How are the power conv…?" She noticed Kagura in the doorway and her eyes grew to about the size of dinner-plates. "Um, Yuka? I'll… I'll have to call you back." She hung up without taking her eyes off the guest. "…you're up," she finally managed.

"Hi," Kagura replied. What's with the reaction? Did she look so bad?

"Um…" they stared at each other for a few seconds. The girl was disarmingly cute; Kagura didn't generally like cute things specifically because they disarmed her. This could turn out to be a rocky stay. "I'm… I'm Chiyo Mihama." She stuck out a tiny hand.

"Kagura." They shook. "Thanks for patching me up, but I really have to go."

"Go?" Chiyo asked, a little distressed, "But you're not well yet...!"

"Ah, well," Kagura replied lightly, "I'll be fine."

"At least stay and eat!"

The soldier had already started to limp from the room, but the mention of food brought her up short. It seemed her stomach had something to say to her other than, "Oh, my God! I've been SHOT!" Kagura sat as gracefully as she could and folded her hands on the table.

Chiyo breathed a sigh of relief and returned to tending the pot. "It'll be ready in a few minutes. Just sit down and relax, okay?"

Kagura was already sitting, though, and relaxing wasn't on her mind. "How long have I been out?"

"We found you just last night."

"Mm. Haven't lost too much time, then."

"Where do you have to go? I mean, why are you in such a rush?"

"It's—uh, a family emergency."

Chiyo glanced at her sideways, but didn't question further. "Kenobi… there's a hermit named Kenobi who lives a ways from here. Everyone says he's crazy, though. Is that who you meant?"

"Dunno." Kagura's eyes drifted over the counter and table. Everything was pretty darn normal… different colors and shapes than she was used to, but it was your basic household. At her elbow was a textbook entitled '_Hyperspatial Mathematics and You_.' It looked like about four phone books. "This yours?" she asked, half joking.

"Yes."

She blinked. This Chiyo couldn't have been older than ten! "You're, ah, you're going to college, then?"

"Uh huh, next year!" Chiyo affirmed with a touch of pride as she laid a plate before her guest. "The Imperial Academy on Coruscant!"

"Ah." Kagura's voice was hard and flat. "Your parents must be proud."

"What's wrong?"

"N-never mind." Kagura sighed. No use in causing any trouble here. She'd only have to make small talk until the adults of the house arrived, then she could make her escape.

* * *

"You can forget it," Owen said, "You wouldn't make it a mile out there, and then all the water we spent on you would be wasted."

He was planted in the doorway, arms crossed, blocking it with his wide body. Beru stood uncomfortably to the side, her hands on Chiyo's shoulders. Kagura faced him in a posture that might have been threatening if she weren't leaning quite so heavily on the crutch.

"You don't understand!" she protested. "It's urgent…"

"Why? What's so urgent?"

"I… I can't tell you."

"Well, I guess you're not going anywhere then."

"I could blast you and steal your vehicle," Kagura suggested coldly.

"But you won't." Damn. He had her there. "You're obviously not from around here. I guess I can't stop you if you really want to go hobbling blind across seven-hundred kilometers of desert…"

"I'm a Rebel!" she suddenly snapped. There was a long, absolutely shocked pause. Beru tried to pull her niece close but Chiyo stood firm. After enduring a few seconds of determined staring, Owen shrugged. "So?"

"So? So the stormtroopers are gonna come and kick down your door!"

"Are you kidding? The stormtroopers around here barely…"

"There's a Star Destroyer in orbit."

"How about that. Hold… hold on a second," Owen said absently, then turned and pointed at Chiyo. "Ha! Ha HA Ha! I TOLD you!"

"Is now the time…?" Chiyo asked.

"Sorry," Owen said at Kagura's strange look, "It's just, between those two, I almost never get to be right. I have to gloat when I get the chance, you know."

"Oh."

"Listen, Ms. Kagura. You're not going anywhere until you're better, and that's final. Nothing is going to change my mind." But before he could go on, the "phone" rang and he snatched it up. "Yeah?" Owen listened for a few seconds, his expression slowly growing grimmer and grimmer. Finally, he said, "Thanks," and signed off.

"Okay, my mind is changed. Grissoms just got a visit from some stormtroopers… we think they're coming here next. Chiyo, take our guest with the landspeeder. We'll tell 'em that you're off with your friends or something." Chiyo nodded and rushed from the room. Beru started to protest, but her husband rolled right over her. "Sorry we couldn't be better hosts, Miss, but…"

"Wait, why are you helping me?" Kagura asked, ignoring the voice that shrieked _Gift horse! Mouth! _in the back of her mind. "I just told you I was a Rebel. Shouldn't you turn me in? I mean, if they found out, they might kill you!"

"Maybe that's why we have to help you." Owen grabbed a napkin and a pen and started drawing a crude map. "Okay, this Kenobi guy you're looking for…"


	4. The Grand Moff

**04: The Grand Moff**

The Princess was holding up surprisingly well. In spite of repeated interrogations, long stretches confined alone and perhaps even a little rough handling, she refused to budge from her obviously bogus story of the diplomatic mission. Finally, the Imperials had decided to take out all the stops and subject her to the one thing even her iron will couldn't withstand.

Kaori was led by a trio of guards down endless lengths of corridors, enough to make her realize that they weren't on the _Implacable_ anymore. Her elbows were bound together in front of her as well as her wrists, and two more guards followed at a discrete distance. She was almost flattered; after her performance on the Blockade Runner, they weren't taking any chances.

She was confident. There was absolutely nothing that could break her cool.

But when they finally arrived at a great control room, she saw three things that made her blood run cold. The first was Darth Nochichi far away on a command deck, but she'd faced him before. The second was her homeworld, Alderaan, through the titanic viewport that made up one whole wall, but that didn't necessarily mean anything.

Neither compared to the third. She stopped dead in her tracks and just sort of stared for a few seconds, mouth dry and stomach turning. "Step it up," one of the guards ordered, thumping her between the shoulder blades with the butt of his rifle. This snapped her back to reality, and she was able to compose herself before the object of revulsion drew near.

"I wondered who was holding Nochichi's leash," she greeted icily, "I should have recognized your foul stench as soon as I came on board… Grand Moff Kimura."

"It's good to see you still have spirit," Kimura replied, leering through (thankfully) opaque glasses. "I like that."

The very notion that this… this _creature _liked her made Kaori feel a little sick. She'd heard many terrible stories about the Grand Moff. His ruthlessness and lechery were legendary (and hopefully greatly exaggerated.) It was also said that he was a fan of classical literature, which led the underground press to dub him the Bloody Poet in much the same spirit as they had named the Bespin Strangler. He had appeared in his share of cartoons as well, where he was often depicted with a ridiculously wide-open mouth. Their creators had about the same survival rate as Nochichi's.

"Well, we searched your ship from stem to stern, interrogated the whole surviving crew and even scanned the surrounding space. It sure looks like you're telling the truth… but there are still a few loose ends. We're missing the captain of your guard, for instance."

_Kagura!_ Determined as she was, the Princess couldn't fully conceal the wild surge of hope that filled her. Kimura noted it with a guarded smirk, then turned away from her. "Whether or not you have those plans, we know you're an executive in this Rebellion, and we suspect you know where their base is."

"What are you _talking _about?" she gritted, filling her voice with indignation. "We…"

"Don't be so coy." Something about the way he said _coy_ set off a fresh wave of nausea. "Do you know where we are?"

She looked around. To all appearances, it was a standard command deck, though much larger than she was used to. Alderaan hung above them peacefully, but something about the layout of the room gave her the feeling that it was in a set of crosshairs. What kind of a vessel or station could…?

Station. Oh, no.

"That's right," Kimura smiled at her shocked look. "It's not just a schematic anymore. This is the N2 Prototype Imperial Battlestation." Kaori struggled to cover her reaction. Her homeworld really _was_ in the crosshairs! "I've been trying to think of a more poetic name, though. _Mjolnir_, maybe, or _Tartarus_. Some people are saying _Death Star_, but I don't think that'll stick."

"We're ready to start drawing power," one of the technicians called.

"So, about that base…" Kimura said, throwing an arm over Kaori's shoulder and facing the viewport as if expecting a show. She swallowed.

* * *

Kagura had expected the heat. Tatooine _was _a desert world, after all. She would have been disappointed if it wasn't hot enough to melt the soles of her boots. The thing that really got her was how _bright _it was outside… though she should have known, what with the two suns and endless plains of white sand.

She had to squint even through the sunglasses Owen had given her, and if she tilted her head back more than forty degrees, daggers of sunlight stabbed the back of her skull. Irritatingly, Chiyo sat next to her in the landspeeder, wide, clear eyes completely unshielded and unbothered.

Well, by the sun, anyway. She kept glancing over at her charge uneasily, adding tension to what should have been a companionable silence. Kagura realized that it must have been a little off-putting to be ferrying a Rebel around, but jeez…

"So, ah…" she faltered for a moment. The silence was getting annoying, but what could they talk about? "You're headed to the Academy, then?"

"To- to be an explorer," the girl replied quickly, "Not a soldier."

"Hmph." Kagura leaned out of her seat to let the wind rush through her hair. A sharp blast of scouring grit yanked her back in, though. "The explorers aren't any better, you know."

"Really?"

"The Empire doesn't have a very good track record when it comes to indigenous cultures. Who was it here? There was a race here, wasn't there?" Kagura didn't remember her schooling too well, but she was pretty sure about this one.

"Do you mean the Tuskens?"

"That's right. They had a civilization before the Empire decided to colonize this place and crushed them. But then, it does stuff like that all the time."

"I've never heard anything like that…"

"It's not something you'd advertise."

"Mm." Chiyo looked troubled. That was a relief; most people exploded when you challenged their view of reality like that. "I'm… I'm not calling you a liar, but that sounds a little… unlikely?"

Kagura was curious to know if her companion were always so polite or if it was because she was stuck in a small vehicle with an armed Rebel. She shrugged. "Well, I didn't come to recruit you. Do your thing."

"I've always wondered about—" Chiyo cut herself off in mid-sentence and brought them to a skidding halt. Kagura, who hadn't bothered to buckle in, was knocked painfully into the dash. "Ow! Dammit! What are you--?"

"Sorry!" Chiyo put a hand on the wounded woman's shoulder. "Oh, my God! Are you all right? I didn't mean to-"

"Fine, I'm fine! What did you stop for?"

"Look…" Chiyo pointed down a slope to the West. In the distance, Kagura could _just _make out a cluster of… something. Why was it so damn bright out? "What is that?" she asked.

"Tuskens." The girl's voice held a touch of fear and a certain hardness Kagura wouldn't have expected of it. She watched in disgruntlement as her host snatched up a pair of binoculars and slung a hunting blaster across her back.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"I have to see where they're going! I mean, the Grissoms don't live too far from here, and if they're going to raid…" she hopped out of the speeder and started up a nearby ridge.

Chiyo threw herself down on the ridge and put the binoculars to her face. She could see a cluster of five banthas in the distance, the tiny figures of the Tuskens moving around them. "Five of them," she said to herself as Kagura started huffing up the ridge after her. Not the smartest thing to do on a crutch. "But… one, two, three… where's the fifth Tusken?"

The answer came as a clear, sharp crack, sending her binoculars spiraling into the air. She fell backwards with a startled yelp, fumbling for her blaster as the Tusken crested the ridge before her with a fearsome howl. She just managed to get the weapon off her back before the Tusken's staff streaked down and the world shattered around her.


	5. Panther Call

**05: Panther Call**

"I'm letting her stew," Kimura explained. "She knows what we're threatening now. In a few hours she'll be ready to tell us everything."

He stood at the head of a long table lined with nobles and officers of varying ranks, silhouetted by Alderaan through the viewport behind him and more menacingly by Darth Nochichi drifting near his right shoulder. Many speculated that the Empress was merely a figurehead and it was the Moffs who truly ruled… they were completely wrong, but sometimes Kimura was almost convinced himself.

"Are you sure this will work?" an Admiral asked. "She'll probably lie."

"That's what he's here for," Kimura replied, gesturing at Nochichi. A young Moff chuckled, but the alien didn't react. "In an hour-and-a-half we'll know where the Rebellion's base is."

"Yes!" that same Moff cried, "And then we'll crush them with the power of the _Death Star_!"

"**Even the power to destroy worlds is insignificant to that of the Force**," Nochichi reminded. Everybody cringed when the young man laughed; the Sith Lord's lessons were rarely gentle. "Ha! With weapons like this, the Empire doesn't need your outmoded religion anymore, Darth."

Darth Nochichi drifted around the edge of the table and the other turned in his chair at his approach. He stared down at the impudent Moff and slowly turned _red_. His armor and cloak were as dead black as ever, but he had changed in some indefinable way that made one imagine swirling orange and crimson light. "Um…"

"**Tell me something…**" Darth Nochichi said casually, producing a menacing metallic cylinder. He moved one end of it along the noble's face under his eyes. "**What would happen to you if I cut your face in two, like this?**"

"I'd… I'd, uh, die."

"**Yeah, you'd die. Or something.**" The way he said that last made it clear that he had 'something' in mind and that it was very unpleasant. Nochichi replaced the cylinder at his belt and drifted away. Everyone was completely silent until the door hissed shut behind him.

"Great, just great!" Kimura whined. "Now he's going to go brood. That's it for the meeting; I've got to catch up to him before he strangles half the crew."

* * *

"What's going on?" Chiyo asked groggily. Instead of answering, Kagura poured a little more water down her throat and looked over her shoulder, grimacing at what she saw. The Tusken that hit Chiyo had gone through her pockets, then, leaving her for dead, had gone back to his fellows and told them about the landspeeder.

Kagura had thought to try and get to it first, but she could barely move herself, let alone an unconscious companion, and those banthas were frighteningly fast. It took them less than a minute to galumph across the sands and surround the more modern conveyance.

"Wh-what are they doing?"

This time Kagura answered, staring through one half of the broken binoculars. "Looks like they're trying to take the radio."

"Oh… they… have the speeder."

"Yeah."

"Oh, no… we are _dead_."

Kagura smirked at that. Some things didn't change no matter what planet you were on. "Look, I'm sure that your uncle will understand…"

"No, you don't understand. Do you know how far we've come?" Kagura shrugged. The younger girl sat up and pinched the bridge of her nose. "At least four-hundred kilometers. We'll never make it back with the water we have."

"Oh." That _was _bad.

"Why didn't you…?" Chiyo asked, gesturing at the soldier's blaster.

"Yes, that's right," Kagura said sarcastically, "I'll go down there and blaster-whip them all into submission."

"What?"

"Your uncle took the power packs out... I guess that's why he was so confident I wouldn't blast him."

So there was nothing to do but settle down and watch the Tuskens squabble over what they found in the vehicle. Sure enough, the radio came out with a hideous plastic wrenching sound and three of the Tuskens fell on each other trying to claim it. The other two stood back and watched until some disagreement rose between them and they started throwing punches as well.

"You're saying these guys had a civilization?" Chiyo asked.

Kagura sighed. "We have to do _something_… any ideas?"

Before her companion could answer a haunting, unearthly yowl rolled over the dunes, making everybody in the area except Kagura give a mighty jolt. The Tuskens forgot all about the radio and piled onto their mounts, kicking up great clouds of dust as they galloped away.

Chiyo whimpered.

"What the hell was that?" Kagura asked.

"That's a sand panther call…" Chiyo replied, trembling. "They travel in huge packs and their claws have bacteria!"

"Um… bacteria?"

"It makes you bloat up…" the way she shuddered, that was obviously the worst part for her. "And then they tear you apart and eat you."

"Well, when it rains it pours," Kagura said lightly, expertly flipping the blaster so that she gripped it by its barrel. "Can you help me up? I lost my crutch trying to get up here."

"Y-you're going to blaster-whip a pack of…? Wait, hold on."

What came into sight far below was not a horde of feline killing machines, but rather a single figure wrapped in a dark brown cloak and hood. It dusked quickly towards the speeder and looked inside.

"Hey!" Kagura called, holding the empty blaster properly and training it on the stranger. "We need that!" The figure threw back its hood, freeing an impressive wash of shining black hair, and regarded Kagura with cool, dark blue eyes that passed over her blaster with Olympian unconcern.

Chiyo tugged on her sleeve. "Put that away!"

"Just being cautious," Kagura muttered, holstering the useless weapon. Chiyo helped her down the incline towards their rescuer. "You know, she looks familiar."

"So you threatened her with a blaster?"

Kagura ignored her and looked the newcomer over. She was imposingly tall, but with a gentle, deferential bearing. "You're injured…" her voice was deep and soft, now laced with concern. The soldier was _certain _she'd seen this woman before.

"It's not a big deal."

"I can help you. My home isn't far." A question mark hovered in her voice.

"Sorry," Kagura said before Chiyo could accept. "I have to get to Kenobi's."

"Ah… I haven't heard that name in a long time."

"Oh!" Chiyo jumped even more than she had for the panther call, making Kagura grunt softly in pain. "You're… (sorry) are you…?"

"I'm Nanashi Sakaki, Jedi Apprentice." Sakaki smiled softly and offered her hand. "I've been waiting to meet you, Ms. Mihama."


	6. Rivals!

**06: Rivals!**

"How did you learn to do a sand panther call?" Chiyo asked as they whipped over the desert. The Jedi sat on the body of the speeder behind her, feet resting on the backseat. She wouldn't have been able to cram herself into the tiny space.

"I taught myself," Sakaki replied quietly, with something approaching wistfulness. "I always hoped one would get close enough so that I could pet it."

Kagura thought back to the description of the creatures and wondered why anybody would want to touch them. Not for the last time, she decided not to ask.

Sakaki's small abode sat literally in the middle of nowhere. If you stood on her front step, the desert stretched out around you unbroken by any feature nearly to the horizon. It was a squat, unassuming little structure made of hard clay that was almost the same color as the sand around it.

A small speeder-bike leaned against one wall. Though the notion of this placid young woman tearing around on such a dangerous, rakish vehicle was a little disconcerting, it at least explained how she got supplies.

The inside was just as simple, but blessedly cool and dim. The only bit of decoration was an enormous plush cat resting in one of its threadbare chairs. Again, Kagura decided not to ask. As she removed her sunglasses, she happened to glance over at Sakaki and take note of a profusion of scars on her hands.

"What happened there? Do you Jedi run your hands through broken glass or something?"

"Mm?" Sakaki glanced at her own hand in surprise. "Oh… I spent some time with the one who taught Master Kenobi. He believes corporal punishment." Now that Kagura was looking, she saw a lot of what looked like bite-marks. And yet one last time, she let go of her curiosity.

Sakaki started some tea and motioned them to sit in the living area. "What did you need to see Master Kenobi about?" she asked.

"I'd rather… is he around? Can I wait for him?" Kagura replied.

"He-" Sakaki looked away for just an instant, "That is-- Master Kenobi… passed away."

"_What?_"

"He left on a… business trip about a year ago, and…"

Kagura sighed. It just figured. "But you were his student?"

"I was." This was said firmly and without a hint of duplicity. Though she wasn't the trusting sort, Kagura felt that she could trust this person. And then there was that blasted familiarity…

"Well, I was supposed to give you this," Kagura said, handing over the envelope. "It's from Princess Kaori." Sakaki looked at the envelope sadly, then set it aside without opening it. "And this…" continued Kagura, producing the disk, "Was for Master Kenobi."

Sakaki nodded and disappeared into the kitchen again, returning with a tray of tea in one hand and two objects clutched awkwardly in the other. The first, she dropped on the table in front of Kagura; it was an antique reader, so decrepit looking that she didn't really want to trust the disk to it.

Their host set the tea down and handed the other object to Chiyo. "I thought you'd be interested to see this," she said, her eyes lifting a little. "It was your father's."

As Chiyo lifted whatever-it-was, Kagura could have sworn that her pigtails twitched with a faint 'weep-woop!' sound. Nobody else reacted, though, so she must have imagined it. "This…" Chiyo murmured, then stood and lifted it high over her head. With that fabled _snap-hiss_, a light blue blade burst into being.

"It hasn't been ignited in ten years," Sakaki said, taking a cup of tea in hand. "It's rightfully yours, if you'll take it."

"But… what would I do with a…?" Chiyo trailed off, staring into the humming blade. Her pigtails twitched again. "It's true, then…"

Sakaki gestured through an archway into an empty room. "You should get a feel for it… just be careful." Chiyo stood and walked into the cleared space as if in a daze. "Are you sure if that's a good idea?" Kagura asked.

The Jedi didn't respond. They sat in silence for a few seconds as the reader chattered to itself. The disk was giving it indigestion, apparently. As long as there was nothing important to be doing… "You know, some people can't handle hot tea," Kagura said, grinning challengingly. "How are you at it?"

Kagura threw back the near-scalding cup, chugging it down in half a second and slamming the empty glass on the table heavily. "Hot damn! Beat that!"

Sakaki stared at her blandly and took a measured sip of tea. Kagura was annoyed at first, but that aggravating obstinacy is what finally made her identity click. "I remember you! We went to the Imperial Academy on Delnor together! We were rivals, remember?"

"Rivals?" Sakaki asked blankly.

"Yeah! Swimming, rock-climbing, track, marksmanship… you usually beat me, but I always gave you a good fight. Don't you remember?"

Sakaki looked slowly back at Chiyo to buy herself some time. The girl was waving her new blade through slow infinity loops, still looking kind of glazed. But, try as she might… the Jedi turned back. "No."

"Oh, come on! You're the one who spurred me to improve so much! I never would have made it to the Princess's Guard if not for you. You seriously don't remember?"

Again, she slowly turned her head back for a few seconds. Fortunately, Chiyo still hadn't decapitated herself. "Sorry."

"Oh, well," Kagura said, a trifle hurt but shrugging it off, "We'll pick up where we left off!"

They shook, Sakaki perhaps showing a little less enthusiasm.

Chiyo extinguished the light-saber and returned. "I… so my father seriously _was _a Jedi? But… I mean, they were wiped out two Emperors ago!"

Sakaki nodded. "And you can be, too-- a Jedi, I mean. Not wiped out."

"Wh-what? Me? But I… but…"

"Yeah, her?" Kagura added with even more disbelief. Chiyo shot her a miffed look.

"The Force is strong in you."

"The… Force?" This time, Kagura was sure the girl's pigtails moved with that strange little sound.

"The Force is what gives a Jedi her power," Sakaki explained, (Weep-woop! went Chiyo's hair) "It's an energy field created by all (weep-woop!) living things. It surrounds (weep-woop!) uh…" she lost her place for a moment, "Surrounds and penetrates us. It binds- (weep-woop!) um… can you, can you make them stop doing that?"

"Doing what?" Chiyo asked innocently. Her pigtails moved again.

"That's pretty creepy," Kagura commented.

Sakaki grabbed Chiyo's pigtails gently and finished her speech in a quick burst. "It surrounds and penetrates us, and binds the galaxy together." "Oh," Chiyo said. Sakaki released her hair and added more sedately, "And it's strong in you. It would be a waste if you didn't develop it."

The girl didn't respond, instead looking at her father's lightsaber. It was a little too large for her, but not by much. Yasuhiro Mihama hadn't been a very tall man. She looked conflicted.

"You don't have to decide right now," Sakaki put her hand on Chiyo's head. "Do what you feel is right."

"It's ready," Kagura said, giving the ancient reader a smack. "C'mon, you piece of crap, display!"

Sakaki got up and started around the table. "It doesn't help to hit it," she advised. "You'll only—" and suddenly she dropped to one knee with a strangled gasp.

"What's wrong?" Kagura asked in alarm. Her old classmate had partially curled up, shuddering and covering her face with one hand. The woman's Jedi calm had been blasted away. "Are you okay?"

"Ms. Sakaki!" Chiyo cried, taking her arm.

Sakaki shook herself. After a few seconds, she rose slowly. "I've never… that…" she leaned heavily on the table. "That's never… happened before…"

"What was it?" Kagura asked.

"It was a… a disturbance in the Force. It was as if…" she groped for words, "As if a million voices all cried out at once and vanished. Like… a whole world had died." Her dark eyes seemed a little blank, but she was pulling herself together admirably.

"Will you be okay?" Chiyo asked, still clutching her arm. Sakaki closed her eyes and nodded, finally standing fully.

Kagura gave her a concerned glance but didn't say anything more. She struck the reader again, and finally... "Okay, it's coming up."

Sakaki circled behind her and leaned over her shoulder. What she saw on the reader's cracked screen made her eyes darken. "Let's get Chiyo-chan home, Ms. Kagura. We're going to Alderaan."


	7. No Home to Call Her Own

(A/N: This chapter features some screwed up astronomy, but I think it's _so _much cooler than a simple superlaser.)

* * *

**07: No Home to Call Her Own**

"Okay, we're drawing," a technician called. "We'll be ready in ten minutes."

Once more Princess Kaori found herself on the bridge of the newly-christened _Death Star_, no doubt to be subjected to another gentle (but undeniably creepy) interrogation by Kimura. Actually, she couldn't help but wonder why the notoriously ruthless Bloody Poet was going so easy on her. There was only one explanation, and to be honest, torture would have been preferable.

Something seemed different about this time, though.

"Ah, excellent," Kimura said sedately as he walked to join her with a wineglass in one hand. The guards on either side of Kaori moved away. "Would you like a drink, Kaorin?"

"Don't call me that!" she said angrily.

"But that's what your friends call you, isn't it?"

"I'm no friend of yours! Maybe I could tolerate you if you had some redeeming quality, but believe me, I've looked."

"Ahh… you hurt my feelings, Princess. You know why you're here, yes?"

"Yes. And you can forget it."

"I'm afraid that the Empress is getting impatient. I tried to make her give you a little more time, but we need that information. It truly pains me to do this to you."

"What…?" she looked around the bridge again. The technicians and officers were even more frenzied than usual, and, if possible, Nochichi looked like he was glowering even harder on the distant command platform. On several large consoles, gauges were filling ominously.

No. They wouldn't. Not even Kimura would…

"The _Death Star_'s main weapon is finally ready. You know, the Rebels are becoming more and more troublesome, Kaorin. It's my job to deal with them, and I'm getting a little desperate."

"Don't…" Kaori gasped, mouth dry. "Oh, God, don't."

"Well, if you'd just tell me where you're Rebellion's base is, I wouldn't have to." He hailed one of the technicians. "Has it been seven minutes yet? Ah. You should see this; the light is just now reaching us."

Before Kaori could ask what he meant by that, Alderaan's sun suddenly seemed to dim slightly. As she watched, it continued to wane horrifyingly until she could even look directly at it without discomfort. "What the hell?"

"Such language." Kimura chuckled. "I don't pretend to understand the Physics, but we're absorbing energy from Alderaan's sun using a faster-than-light reaction. All of the power that it generates is coursing through the body of this station right now. We can focus it anywhere we want. Anywhere. So…?"

"I… I…" It had been so easy to resist Kimura's prodding before, but when actually faced with the immediate death of her homeworld... "It- okay! Okay, I'll tell you!"

Darth Nochichi had started drifting over as her resistance waned, and now hovered alongside Kimura. "Okay, then. Let's hear it."

"D- Dantooine. We're on Dantooine." Kaorin sagged severely enough that one of her guards moved to keep her from falling. "Just… just turn it off." In response, Kimura turned to the Sith Lord and, after a long moment, said, "Proceed with the demonstration."

"_What?_"

"We know that you're lying, Princess. Don't even bother acting all indignant, it didn't work before and it won't now. And you shouldn't be so upset. What we've already done to the star would have ruined Alderaan's climate forever. We're just making its end come a little more quickly."

"No!" Kaori lurched towards the Grand Moff, but the guards restrained her. "Don't do it! I—I'll tell you! The truth this time!"

"It's too late, Kaorin. I'm sorry."

_My home!_ Kaori looked up at the serene green globe. _It's going to die! It's…

* * *

_

"…gone." Chiyo said in a daze.

She stood in the midst of her ruined home, unfocused gaze sliding over crumbled walls, guttering fires and the wide sinkhole that stood over where the underground homestead proper once lay.

"If they wanted to convince people the Tuskens did this, they didn't do a very good job," Kagura commented as she knelt over a few discarded weapons. "I don't think these things have ever been used."

Sakaki walked a slow circle through the ruins, her bearing suggesting that she was scenting the air. She came to a stop near Kagura, opened her eyes and said, "There's no death."

"Huh?"

"There's surprise, panic and anger, but nobody was killed here." Again, she spoke so firmly and matter-of-factly that one just couldn't doubt her. "Here," Kagura echoed sourly, but softly enough so that Chiyo couldn't hear her. "What should we do now? I mean, the Imperials are probably after her, too."

"We'll take her with us."

Kagura sighed. There really wasn't another answer, especially with her rival's desire to train the girl in the ways of the Force. "But… about her Aunt and Uncle?" she was still almost whispering. "I don't think the Imperials will just let them go. How should we break it to her?"

"You could just tell me," Chiyo said with perhaps a touch of anger. Kagura winced and looked up. The girl was still a good distance away, back turned, but there was little doubt she had heard. And great, she was just old enough to be mad about being treated like a child.

For a few seconds, the only sound was wind howling over the dunes around them.

Sakaki finally said, "We should go. I'll drive."

As they moved back towards the speeder, Kagura wondered what was going through Chiyo's mind. She herself had been blessed with fairly stable childhood, and couldn't imagine how she'd have reacted to something like this.

Sakaki tossed her pack in the back of the speeder, ratcheted the driver's seat wa-a-a-ay back and stepped in. Chiyo climbed in after her, and, as the vehicle hummed to life, she noticed that the Jedi's knapsack hadn't been properly closed. She mechanically started gathering the articles that had fallen out… and paused on what looked like a pocket photo-album with Necoconeco engraved on its cover.

_She likes Necoconeco? _Chiyo thought in dull surprise. _I thought it was just me!_

Photography had been one of those arts that just refused to die out no matter how far technology advanced. Some places, there were still fanatics that huddled in dark rooms over vile chemicals to develop their pictures "old-school." Sakaki didn't strike her as _that _type, but Chiyo was a little curious as to what she'd have pictures of.

And to be honest, she was also in desperate need of a distraction.

The first picture was fairly amusing. The subject was three young men of about Sakaki's age who seemed to have that same serious, dignified, Jedi-esque air about them, but in front of the lens they were suddenly endearingly full of themselves, almost (but not quite) reduced to striking a "Charlie's Angels"-style power pose.

One was a tall, dark, striking man in pale gray robes. A slightly shorter fellow with a beard, somewhat wild hair and tired eyes stood to his right, and on his left… Chiyo gasped. The guy on the left was _quite_ short and slender, with fine brown hair, a sharp chin and a gentle smirk that she couldn't help but smile back at, if only slightly.

The back was notated "_Mace, Ben, 'Hiro, '24._"

It was the first time she had ever seen her father. And in spite of all the recent craziness, the sudden uncertainty of her future and the shock of losing her home, she felt a little warmed. Hopeful, even.

Her? A Jedi?

Maybe.


	8. Alcohol and Intelligence

(A/N: Matsuyama is one of AD's useless male extras… but not the same as the one in the movie. He probably doesn't even have a minute of screen-time, but he's there. He's there.)

* * *

**08: Alcohol and (Impaired?) Intelligence**

The Imperials had set up checkpoints leading into Mos Eisley, of course. They were sparing no effort in their hunt for the fugitives. Before either of her passengers could even think to hide themselves, Sakaki pulled up to one of the posts and drew to a halt.

"Excuse me, ma'am, but I need to talk to your passengers," the stormtrooper said.

Sakaki looked up at him in mild surprise. "Passengers?"

He stepped back and cocked his head to one side, confusion evident even through his armor. After a few seconds he shook his head and said, "Never mind. Sorry for the inconvenience. Move along." She nodded coolly and pulled ahead. Kagura and Chiyo came out of cardiac arrest and looked back at the guard, who was muttering, "Now I'm seeing things."

"Was that…?" Kagura started.

"Did you just…?" Chiyo tried.

Sakaki nodded shortly. She wasn't proud.

Mos Eisley got a lot of bad press. One famous columnist had pegged it as a "wretched hive of scum and villainy," and while he was no doubt exaggerating slightly, Chiyo could see why somebody could walk away with that idea. She flipped through the album absently as they nosed through the crowded streets.

Most of it wasn't terribly interesting; just some pictures of dunes with these mysterious golden blurs across them. She wondered what they could be until the last photo told all: a gorgeous picture of a sand panther lounging in the sun, gazing almost right into the lens with languid, tawny eyes. Success!

"It took a long time to get that," Sakaki said without turning. Chiyo gave a start and hurriedly stuffed the album back into the Jedi's pack. "It's all right. I was going to show you anyway."

They eased to a stop in front of "the Cantina." There were many cantinas in Mos Eisely, of course, but only one known as "the Cantina." It was the only establishment in the whole city that was murky, dangerous and unpleasant enough not to rank its actual name. You could tell just by looking at it that it was the very bottom of the barrel.

Kagura grinned. "Perfect!"

"We're going in _there?_" Chiyo asked.

"Of course. Only place we'll find someone stupid enough to take us up with a Star Destroyer in orbit."

"Stay close," Sakaki said, putting a hand on her shoulder. Chiyo didn't need to be told twice. When she opened the door, about seven customers looked up sharply then returned to their drinks in relief.

To be fair to its owner, the Cantina was very clean and well-kept. Judging by the general level of sobriety among the customers, the drinks were probably pretty good. It was impossible to say what malignant feng-shui brought so many undesirables to this particular place, but there it was.

"I know my way around these places," Kagura said. "Why don't you two wait at the bar? I'll find us someone in no time!"

Sakaki shrugged amiably. She could tell that the other was still in competition with her; no doubt Kagura felt pressured to come up with a way to match the "mind trick" that had gotten them into the city. If it made her companion feel better, she didn't mind cooling her heels for a while.

"Aunt Beru wouldn't be too happy…" Chiyo commented as they sat down. "An hour with you and I'm already in a bar." Sakaki smiled slightly, but didn't make a reply. "So you'll really teach me to be a Jedi?"

The tall woman hesitated. "It's… not as easy as that," she answered. "I can't teach you everything you'll need to know. I was just an Apprentice myself when Master Kenobi… went his way."

"Oh…" Suddenly, Chiyo was spun around in her stool to face a _very _unpleasant looking individual. In fact, he was probably the ugliest guy she had ever seen in her life. "I don't like you," he growled. "S-sorry," Chiyo stammered, starting to turn away. She was instantly turned back to face him by a rough hand on her shoulder. "I _really _don't like you!"

"I… I don't know what to say."

"Then how about you scr-?"

_Thunk! _Sakaki set her drink down heavily.

The tough looked over Chiyo's head and whatever he saw there made him pale noticeably. "Never mind. Not worth my time," he finished sullenly, and left. Very quickly. Chiyo turned back to Sakaki, who was watching him leave disinterestedly.

"Did you just use the Force on him?" she asked.

"That would have been like sandblasting a soup cracker," the Jedi replied.

"You-?" before she could go on, Kagura returned. "I found someone, but…" she noticed the glass in Sakaki's hand. "Good. You'll need that to deal with these two."

Kagura led them to a corner table, where there waited two women. One was about her height, with long dark hair and wide, slightly manic eyes. Her companion was taller and more solidly built, a voluminous brown mane framing her (comparatively) mild, bespectacled face.

"Takino Tomo of Corellia and Mizuhara Yomi of Valeria," Kagura introduced. "They have a ship." She turned back. "Ms. Sakaki, Jedi, and Chiyo-chan. They have money."

"Nice to meet you," Yomi said, rising and offering her hand to Sakaki.

Tomo wasn't nearly so polite. Chiyo took a step back from her venomous gaze. "Um… hi?" The starship captain's eyes narrowed. "It won't work, you know."

"What won't…?"

"You're trying to suck me in with your cuteness! Well let me tell you, it's not happening! You can forget it!"

Yomi swatted her. "Quit being an idiot!"

"I'm the captain!" Tomo struck her back. "I can be an idiot if I want to!"

As they continued in this vein, Sakaki took a deep swallow of her drink. Perhaps Kagura had been right.

* * *

"So, you know what's on my mind." Grand Moff Kimura said, blowing over the top of his caf. Sitting uncomfortably on the other side of his desk was Commander Matsuyama, a young officer who somehow managed to get away with keeping his reddish hair in a rather funky (and non-regulation) style. Though his rank wasn't very high, his actual authority was much more impressive; when you're a man of Imperial Intelligence, even Admirals step lightly around you.

"The new Grand Admiral?"

"That's right. I don't mind telling you that the pool's been pretty fierce. I stand to make seventy-thousand credits on this one. So which candidate made it?"

Matsuyama hesitated. "Who did you bet on?"

"Daala, of course. Who could bet against a face like hers?"

"Oh… because… the, uh, the blue guy made it."

"_What? _Him?"

"Yes, sir."

"The art lover? Glowing eyes? That one?"

"Yes… er, sorry, sir."

"Damn! That guy can't command his way out of a paper bag!"

"Actually, sir, he scored higher…"

"Forget it, forget it." Kimura waved his hand in the air. "Let's move on. What's this 'Empress's Hand' business you mentioned?"

"I've only heard bits and pieces, but from what I've been able to work out, Nochichi's been training this girl to aid him in his duties to the Empress."

"Another rival, then…" Kimura said grimly.

"I, uh, I wouldn't worry, sir. From what I've heard, she's a little… slow."

"Slow?"

"That's how my source put it. Nochichi got frustrated with her and stuck her in an administrative post somewhere… some backwater, gas giant or something. She was kinda young anyway. I don't think you'll have to worry about her for a while."

"Good to hear. One last thing, Matsuyama: my wife?"

"I've come up dry on that one. I'm very sorry, sir, but nobody knows anything. If you ask me, though, sir, I think it looks like she intentionally gave her guards the slip."

Kimura sighed angrily. "Well, you've done your best." He slid a paperweight across his desk, deactivating the room's shielding. "Keep at it, Commander."

"Yes, sir."


	9. Tomo Shoots First!

(A/N: Thanks to DB Sommer, who is the master of an awesome running gag I reference here. Greedo is played by Random Generic Foreign Guy No. 1, as seen in Episode 3 of Daioh.)

* * *

**09: Tomo Shoots First!**

As was the usual custom, the spacemen and their customers sat to exchange pleasantries before getting down to business. Unfortunately, they didn't quite manage to be pleasant. "Valeria, huh?" Kagura commented. "You don't look like any Valerian I've ever seen before."

"That's because she's a scrawny, midget Valerian," Tomo said happily before her colleague could respond. "What was it last time you weighed yourself, Yomi? Sixty-four kilos? Ha!"

"I have a fast metabolism…" Yomi said defensively.

"I remember you at your family reunion! All these big, hulking—" Tomo didn't finish before being punched in the mouth. "Shut up, you idiot!"

Sakaki quietly took a sip of her drink. She was in a bit of a hurry, but custom was custom, and there was no point in getting involved. "So have you two worked together for long…?" Chiyo asked, hoping to change the subject.

"Oh, yeah!" Tomo answered, completely unfazed by the blow she'd just received. "Years! Must be, what, four now, huh?"

"More like a hundred," Yomi muttered.

"What?"

"Never mind. Why do you guys need to get to Alderaan?"

Kagura opened her mouth to answer, but Sakaki said, "Convention," in such a flat, final tone that it closed the subject instantly. The Jedi sensed her "rival's" disgruntlement, (_I wasn't going to tell them anything!_) but felt a certain need to keep things moving.

"It's still not working! You can't fool me!" Tomo suddenly barked, making Chiyo jump. Yomi sighed and covered her eyes. "I don't trust them, Yomi. The short one looks shifty."

"How did an idiot like you ever become a starship captain?" Kagura growled.

"How did an idiot like you ever make it as a soldier?" Tomo shot back.

"How did you know I was a soldier?"

"Maybe I'm not such an idiot. You know what? You can call me an idiot all you want, but I'll bet you can't do it in…" she paused to think of a suitably difficult language. "Alderanian Trade Dialect! Ha!"

As it turned out, that was a bad choice. "(Sure, I can,)" Kagura replied easily, "(You're an idiot.)"

"!" Tomo lurched away from her. "Yomi! What did she say? Did she just insult me?"

Yomi sighed wearily.

"What do you have to say to that?" Kagura grinned.

"I… don't think you've won! This isn't over yet!"

"Ten-thousand credits. Four now, six when we get there," Sakaki finally cut in, as even her legendary patience wore thin. Custom was custom, but sometimes pleasantries just weren't worth it.

"You'll have to do better," Yomi said, grateful that they'd gotten to business. "It's dangerous to fly with Imperials around, you know."

"Alright," Sakaki looked between them. "Six thousand now, four thousand when we get there?"

"That's more like it!" Tomo cried. "Put 'er there!" Before Yomi could react, they shook. "Tomo!" she yelped. "You—but—that's not any m…!"

"What's wrong?"

"Ne- never mind. Just… look, you cover our tab. I'll take them to the ship."

Tomo nodded and started back towards the barkeep, noticing along the way that a man at one of the tables following her with sharp, flinty eyes. Was that…? Oh, no. She gave a resigned sigh and glanced back for Yomi, but her partner was nowhere to be found.

She paid the barkeep and started towards the exit, counting down to herself. "5, 4, 3, 2…" on cue, a hand wrapped around her wrist and deposited her heavily in the chair across from its owner. "(Going somewhere, Takino?)"

"Oh, uh, hey there, Mr. Greedo!" she said in mock surprise. She fished in her head for his language. "Hold on… um, (Will you sleep with me?)"

"(WHAT?)"

"Sorry… was that a greeting?"

"(No,)" Greedo shook his head angrily and switched languages. "No, no it isn't. Where the Hell did you hear that?"

Tomo ignored the question. "Can I ask you for a favor?"

"No. I'm here to take you in. You can't very well ask me for a favor."

"I was just going to ask you to let me go for a while. I have the money, I just don't have it on me. Just let me go get it…"

"That's a favor."

"Come on… whatever Mr. Spince is offering you, I'll double it, soon as I'm paid."

Greedo sneered. "We both know you're not good for the money."

"Well then, I have no choice than to leave without paying you."

"SIT DOWN!" Tomo winced at his tone and sat quickly, spreading her hands on the table. "Listen," she said, spotting Sakaki's head over the general throng as she left, "I'm good for the money. That woman hired me to take her to Alderaan." Greedo didn't look as she pointed. "Hey, she's right over there!"

"I'm not falling for that one again."

"It'd only be the third time," Tomo grumbled.

"If I let you go, Spince would just hire someone else to come after you. Hell, he's so pissed at you two, I'll bet he'd go straight to Ohyama himself. No way you could buy _that_ guyoff. Just come with m—"

"Oh, my God!" Tomo cried, pointing. Greedo looked.

* * *

"Actually, I hate to admit it, but she's not really an idiot," Yomi said as they neared the spaceport. "Just kind of impulsive."

"Oh, really?" Kagura asked disinterestedly, sliding a new "clip" into her blaster. It was amazing how cheap the power packs were around here, and how eager the vendor had been to get rid of them.

"Yeah, impulsive and thoughtless. A little selfish, too. And she has an itchy trigger-finger. But it's just the kind of person she is… I can't tell you how may scrapes I've had to pull her out of."

"Then why do you stick with her?"

"Oh, it's a long story. Have you heard of a life-debt?"

Sakaki and Chiyo followed along behind. "Say, Ms. Sakaki?"

"Hm?" Sakaki glanced over to her. The girl, though subdued, was doing remarkably well considering her circumstances. But then, growing up here, she was used to hardship. In her short life she'd probably lost more than one friend to Raiders and the vicious twin suns. Chiyo-chan, it seemed, was a lot tougher than she looked.

"Did you know my father?"

"Not really; I was very young. He was more of a family friend."

"A family friend?"

"Yes." They drew to a stop outside of their bay and Yomi started fiddling with the lock. "It was my father who met him. Have you heard of the Black Knight Sakaki?"

"No…"

"He was a famous bounty-hunter. He introduced himself to Sir Mihama with his blaster, in fact."

"He _shot _my father?"

"It's okay, he deflected it," Sakaki reassured. "They were—" Tomo came panting up behind them, stopping just short of colliding with Sakaki, then hopping frantically around behind her and giving her a barrage of little pushes. "Go! Go go go go go!"

"What did you do?" Yomi asked severely. The door finally opened and their customers filed through, not eager to get involved in the coming throw-down. "You aren't in trouble with the law again, are you?"

"I—he—but Greedo shot first!"

"You and that damn blaster! I'm going to take it from you! And now there are probably stormtroopers looking for you, aren't there? You idiot!"

"Look, can we do this later?" Tomo asked, casting a nervous glance over her shoulder.

Yomi growled and disappeared into the bay just in time to hear Kagura cry, "What th-? It's _pink!_" It'd occurred to her to make a derisive comment about the freighter's obvious age or perhaps it's awful state of disrepair, but the first thing that leapt out at her was the color.

"It was gonna be blood red," Tomo explained quickly, "But Yomi was too cheap to get enough paint. Can we get on, please? _Now?_"

"I don't think it looks bad," Chiyo said. She was roundly ignored.

The hatch lowered ponderously and Tomo sprinted aboard, followed by a much more sedate (but definitely not dawdling) Jedi and student. Kagura still stood, stunned. "…it's _pink_."

"What's the big deal?" Yomi asked.

"Sorry, I just…"

"C'mon, you guys! Let's get going!" Tomo yelled from the hatch.

Kagura raised an eyebrow. "What's with you? Don't tell me-" And then the door hissed open behind her. It was a chilling moment; everybody authorized to open that door was inside, so it could only mean…

"Hey!" A stormtrooper strode into the room, blaster rifle at the ready. "Everybody, hands in the air!" In response, Kagura calmly turned and shot him through the stomach. Framed in the doorway, his fellow froze at the jarring crack his armor made on the pavement, then made one of his own with a smoking crater in his forehead.

"What he hell are you doing?" Yomi grabbed her shoulder. "You don't _shoot back_ at Stormies!"

"You do if you're a Rebel," Kagura replied.

"You're a-? You might have told us!"

"Would you have taken us if I had?"

"No, but—"

"What's _wrong _with you two? Get up here!" Tomo hollered.


	10. Death Egg

**10: Death Egg**

"That was _awesome_," Kagura said, watching hyperspace smear by outside of the lounge area's viewport. "No, it was more than awesome, it… it was… damn, was that ever awesome!"

"Wasn't it?" Tomo agreed proudly. "The _Red Spirit_ breaks .4 past lightspeed! Or was it .3? Well, it's something up there."

"I mean…" the soldier leaned to the side so that she could look back along their path. "Can you imagine the look on those gunners' faces? They were even warned and we just shot right by them!"

"Not bad for a pink ship, huh?"

"Not bad at all. Hey, rival?" Sakaki was sitting on the floor with her back against the couch, turning the letter from Kaori over and over in her hands absently. She still hadn't opened it. Though she didn't give any sign that she had heard, Kagura got the sudden sense that she was listening. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Sakaki said softly, pocketing the letter. Chiyo sat next to her, flipping through one of Yomi's books. Either she really didn't like what she was seeing or her mind was elsewhere.

Yomi entered with two trays of food, casting an apologetic glance at the customers. "Oh, have you guys eaten?"

"I'm fine," Kagura assured and Sakaki gestured to that effect as well. Her new apprentice didn't respond. The First Mate set the trays down and Tomo sat across from her, tucking a napkin into her collar. "Wow," the Kagura asked, "Are you gonna eat _all_ of that?"

"That's my aim, yes," Yomi answered testily, snapping her chopsticks with one hand.

"That's… wow, you _must _be a Valerian," Kagura sat next to Tomo. "I mean, I could never manage all of that food. Or even half!"

"Isn't it crazy?" Tomo said. "If I ate a third of that, I'd be huge! You'd have to roll me out of here!"

"Well, isn't that nice for you?" Yomi growled.

"Not really…"

Sakaki finally slit the envelope open with her thumb and read the short letter dispassionately. Well, at least, that's what it would look like. Her poker face held in spite of whatever feeling the letter brought out in her, just as it concealed the fact that she was still rattled by the "disturbance in the Force" and ached terribly for little Chiyo. Far from the Jedi ideal, her serenity was far from complete.

The delicate paper crumpled in her hand as she slid it into the envelope and pocketed them with an inaudible sigh. She should have known… it was especially sad since she was starting to get the feeling that she wouldn't get to see Kaori again. Was that Jedi intuition or just groundless foreboding? The difference was subtle; even a Master could have a hard time telling.

"So…" Chiyo said finally, still looking into the book. "Can we start my training soon?"

"Yes," Sakaki replied, softly enough that the others couldn't hear. "We'll start with your reaction to Ms. Kagura."

"Huh?" _That _wasn't what Chiyo was expected. It sounded more like the start of a therapy session than anything. "My reaction?"

"You tense up around her. You avoid her eyes."

"I… because she…"

"I saw too, Chiyo-chan."

"Didn't even try to get out of it or talk to them," Chiyo said in a small voice, "Just…" she held out a hand and mimed the recoil of a blaster twice. "And… and now here she is, talking and laughing like it's no big deal."

"How would you have her act?"

"I… I don't know…"

"Holy shit!" Kagura suddenly yelled, whirling towards the viewport. "We've gone plaid!"

"_What?_" Chiyo yelped, "We broke Klein's Barrier?"

"Klein's what?"

"Klein's Barrier? You know, where the ship folds space so far in on itself that the…" Chiyo gestured lamely, realizing that she'd have to encapsulate a year and a half of classes to explain it, "…well, so that hyperspace looks like that? I didn't think that a ship this big could do it." Sakaki noted that she forgot her discomfort when she was trying to explain something… that could be useful. And just how smart was this kid?

"Are you calling me a liar?" Tomo asked.

"Of course not! I'm just surprised."

Yomi looked up at her. She was poking the last remains of her food; it didn't look like she would be able to get it all in this time. "Whoa, you understand about Klein's Barrier?"

"Yeah."

"Where did you learn about _that_?"

"I, uh, I don't remember. It was either Hyperspatial Mechanics 203 or 204…"

"You're already in college?"

"Well, corresponding," Chiyo said modestly.

Sakaki couldn't ask for a better student, really. But there was always the possibility of screwing up, and the thought of losing Chiyo to the Dark Side was already more than she could bear. Even Master Kenobi had made his mistakes… in spite of herself, Sakaki felt an uncontrolled thread of anxiety twist through her, slowly blooming into genuine fear.

"Can we continue?" Chiyo asked when the others had returned to their conversation.

"Sorry, I need to meditate for a while," Sakaki replied, voice as mild as ever. "I'm too emotional just now."

Chiyo looked at her in disbelief.

* * *

Being the ranking Intelligence officer on the _Death Star_, Matsuyama was expected to report personally to all of the station's "brass," and there was a _lot _of brass here. He had to deal with an endless parade of narcissistic, pinheaded nobles and officers, all with their own interests, hidden agendas and hair-trigger tempers. Needless to say, it was quite stressful.

Still, he would have taken twice as many narcissistic pinheads if it would get him out of dealing with just one in particular. Matsuyama came to a halt outside an armored door flanked by two stormtroopers wearing short black capes. Here goes… "I'm here to see Lord Nochichi," he said.

"Lord Nochichi is meditating," one of the guards said imperiously. "Come back later."

Matsuyama wondered sourly if these grunts thought they were anything special because of their capes. He also wondered how fast the Sith Lord went through door guards if they were this obnoxious. "I'm here by his orders. Let me through."

"We shouldn't…" the second guard said, but his fellow interrupted him. "Hey, it's this guy's funeral." The door slid open silently and Matsuyama advanced into the dim brown light of Darth Nochichi's lair. The air was cool and musty-smelling, warming slightly nearer to what Matsuyama secretly thought of as the Death Egg.

The great black ovoid opened slowly as he approached, giving him a fleeting glimpse of something red-orange before Nochichi's armor closed over him and he drifted from the confines of his egg. A heavy, reeking green mist rolled out of it and rushed coldly across Matsuyama's feet. "**What do you want, Commander?**"

"I, uh…" the sound of Nochichi's voice made him forget himself for a moment. "You told me to report if anything strange happened on Tatooine…" The Sith Lord drifted silently. After an uncomfortable second or two, the Matsuyama produced a folder and started flipping through it, more to avoid looking at his superior than anything else. "Three hours ago the owners of a private freighter shot their way out of Mos Eisley and ran the _Implacable's _blockade. Neither had a significant criminal record or any known motive for leaving in such a hurry."

"**You think they have the plans?**"

"It's very likely, my lord. Surveillance shows that they had three passengers; one of them could be this Captain Kagura we're missing, though the image quality's too low to tell for sure."

"**Were there any casualties?**"

"A civilian bounty hunter was injured and two stormtroopers were killed."

The Sith Lord seemed to turn green, even though his armor didn't actually change hue. "**That doesn't sound like you, Nanashi…**" he said contemplatively. "**Thank you Commander, you are dismissed.**"

"Should we mount a search?"

"**I will deal with this personally… after dinner.**" Nochichi started drifting back into his Egg. "**On your way out, tell the guards that I do not want any red stuff this time.**"

"Er… no red stuff. Got it." Matsuyama saluted and left as the Sith Lord resumed his meditation.

* * *

Sakaki drifted. As she meditated, her awareness spread, passively and objectively taking in everything around her. She felt Chiyo's hidden fear and confusion, Kagura's steadfast determination and observed that Tomo and Yomi did in fact care for each other, though it seemed even they didn't realize how deeply.

Her ken expanded even further, taking in the endless leagues of empty space around the _Red Spirit_. Sakaki felt as if she was becoming one with the void; there was nothing quite so calming. Farther and farther out her mind roved, even seeing glimpses of nearby stars and other vessels.

But suddenly, she was struck with the icy, horrifying feeling that something was _looking_ _back!_ With a strangled gasp, she snapped out of her trance and surged to her feet. She was alone except for Chiyo, who'd evidently fallen asleep on her arm and was now looking around in bleary confusion. "Master Sakaki, wha's wrong?"

"Where are we?" Sakaki asked sharply.

"I, um…" Chiyo checked her chronometer, "We should be coming up on Alderaan now."

"Oh, _no_…" though tightly controlled, the unflappable Jedi's voice held something that was very close to panic. Chiyo watched her apprehensively. What could possibly frighten her so?

Meanwhile, swathed in the poisonous atmosphere of his meditation chamber, Darth Nochichi's thin lips curved up into a predatory grin. "**I have you now.**"


	11. Landfall

**11: Landfall**

"What… do you _want_?" Princess Kaori asked harshly. She sat on the bench of her cell, staring at the wall. She hadn't moved from that spot since the immolation of Alderaan, eyes stony and withdrawn, mouth drawn tight, face pale. She didn't even turn as Grand Moff Kimura entered with a guard and a tray of hypodermics.

"We've been over this, Kaorin…" Kimura said in a patient, cajoling tone she couldn't stand. "But now there's something else."

Kaori didn't respond.

"The Professor." Kimura watched her carefully for a reaction, but there was none.

"You mean the shadowy head of the Rebellion?" she asked softly. "The secret puppet-master that coordinates all of its branches and guides its overall strategy to topple the Empire?"

"Yes."

She laughed bitterly. "And then would you like to ask me where Santa Claus is? Or what about Lord Nyax?"

"I hate to do this to you, but I don't have much time." Kimura selected a hypodermic from the guard's tray. "Don't make this any harder for yourself."

Kaori felt a slight twinge of fear—she was a little worried that the Moff would try to take more than answers from her if she were drugged. However, she put up a brave front. "Do whatever you want. You've already killed my world; how could you hurt me any more?"

Kimura opened his mouth to answer but his communicator chirped. "We need you on the bridge," came the voice of a young officer.

"I'm busy!" the Moff replied angrily.

"It's important, sir."

He hissed, then thrust the hypodermic into the guard's hand. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" he ordered, and stalked away. The guard looked after him oddly; evidently, he'd been thinking along the same lines as Kaori. He turned to the Princess and assured her, "We'll, ah, we'll stick to the drugs and interrogation."

She held out her arm.

* * *

"They came out of hyperspace here," the technician said, indicating a point on his board. "One ship- they ran it downstairs, it's that freighter that blasted its way out of Mos Eisley. Now, as soon as they appeared, they took off along this line, ignoring our warning shots…"

Kimura nodded absently. He couldn't honestly see what they needed him for. So a ship had ignored their blockade of Alderaan and run off. So what?

"We pegged 'em right here," the tech continued, "But they made it into hyperspace anyway."

"So we've lost them," Kimura said, annoyed. "They could be anywhere. Why did you call for me?"

"They're, ah, they're leaking atmosphere and propellant," his subordinate said apologetically. "We calculated that the only habitable planet they could reach is, ah," he hit a few buttons, "Here. SRS-174. We thought that you'd want to send a search party or something."

"If they're stuck there, why do we care?"

"Because… well, Lord Nochichi was trying to find those plans, r-right?" the poor fellow was practically wilting under the noble's gaze. "The Intelligence boys said that they might be on that ship."

"Hmm…" Kimura tapped the panel, "SRS-174, eh? Is there anything there?"

"Nothing to make it worth colonizing. Cold climate, forested. Pretty pedestrian. They won't find any help there, if that's what you're concerned about."

"Well, good work," the Moff said grudgingly. "I will take it into consideration."

"Thank you, sir."

* * *

SRS-174 was one of those barely-habitable planets where the summer was like autumn and the winter was like Hell. The sky was perpetually gray, as was the bark of the tough, stringy trees that covered most of its surface. Shockingly bright birds and insects flitted through this bleak landscape, more than a few disgruntled by the recent violent disturbance to their peaceful home.

The _Red Spirit_ ticked and cooled at the end of a kilometers-long trench. Like those of its crew, it was a lot tougher than it at first appeared. Even after getting shot, dragged wounded through hyperspace and hurled through an uncooperative atmosphere into a rough landscape, it was still in pretty good shape. The Captain and First Mate stood outside, examining the long, ugly turbolaser scar across its side.

"Oh, no!" Tomo lamented, "It's shot all to hell! What are we gonna do?"

"Shut up," Yomi said. "All we have to do is fix the hyperdrive and we'll be good to go. You should calm down."

"Oh." The captain turned as Sakaki emerged from the vessel, as totally unconcerned as if they had made a perfect landing, and looked around. "I hope we're getting reimbursed for this, you!"

"I'll quintuple your fee," the Jedi replied distantly. Her mind was obviously elsewhere.

"Whoa! Yomi, did you hear that?"

"Yeah."

"Maybe we should get shot at more often!"

"You idiot…"

A short ways away, Kagura and Chiyo sat at the base of a tree. Kagura slapped her on the back. "C'mon you have to admit, that was quite a rush, wasn't it?"

"A… rush?" Chiyo was still trembling and her eyes still weren't focusing properly. "You call that a…?"

"Don't worry, it's just a little trauma," Kagura reassured, snapping her fingers in the girl's face. "You'll be right as rain in a little bit. Either that or you're scarred for life and never able to travel in a pink starship ever again."

"What?"

"Never mind. Just don't worry about it, okay?"

Sakaki walked up and sat cross-legged before them. "Are you alright, Chiyo-chan?"

"Y-yeah… never better," she said, shaking her head rapidly. She didn't want to admit that she'd never been in space before this trip… and what a lousy introduction _this _had been. From that day forward, Chiyo would always have a certain aversion to spaceflight.

"Good. Now that we have time and room, we can start your lightsaber training."

"My--?"

"Shouldn't we help repair the ship?" Kagura asked.

"Ms. Yomi won't let anybody else touch it," Chiyo said, suddenly showing no trace of trauma. "And they've warped the design so far I don't think we could help anyway." Sakaki almost smiled a little—there it was again. It was amazing how that girl shed herself when she had something to explain.

"Lightsaber training already," Kagura commented. "She's letting you do the fun stuff first!"

Sakaki's looked somewhat amused by that. It was not a good sign.

So it was that Chiyo found herself about a hundred yards from the _Red Spirit_, holding her father's lightsaber out awkwardly. Sakaki withdrew a small orb from her pack and tossed it into the air, where it caught itself with a puff of air and drifted at the ready.

"The remote will shoot at you," Sakaki explained simply. "You have to block it."

"What does it shoot?" Chiyo asked. "Darts? Pellets?" A bolt from the remote lashed past her leg and blew a sizable crater in the ground. "AAAHH!"

"Sorry," Sakaki said, taking the remote out of the air, "I still had it set for myself." She fiddled with it for a moment, then held it out at arms length and let it shoot a bolt into her hand. "That's better."

It popped back towards Chiyo and she flinched away from it. "Are you ready for this?" the remote said in an abrasive recorded voice.

"Don't let it distract you," Sakaki advised.

"I'll try—_ow!_" Chiyo hopped on one foot for a second.

"That's the wrong attitude."

"Then what--? _Ow!_"

"Ooooh!" the remote jeered, "You like that, don't you! Oooh! Take it!"

"_Ow! _Master Sakaki, can we turn that—_ah! _off?"

"It's part of the exercise. Ignore it."

"Yeah! Feel the pain!" the remote howled.

"_Ouch! _Son of a--!"

"You know," Kagura said, "I feel kinda bad for enjoying this so much."

Sakaki nodded slightly, wincing as her student took another bolt. She didn't quite feel the same way, but nevertheless felt compelled to say, "You should stay for the blindfold, then."

"Better and better…"


	12. Diabolic Scheme

**12: Diabolic Scheme**

"It is the considered opinion of the Intelligence staff that we should make efforts to build goodwill with Imperial citizens," Matsuyama recited. He stood nervously before the board of Moffs and Grand Moffs, clutching a sheaf of papers with both hands as if it were a life preserver. "We, um…"

"Just what does the Intelligence section have to do with that?" one of the board asked belligerently. "Shouldn't you spooks be doing your own job?"

"With—with respect, sir… the Intelligence department's job is to gather information and make recommendations based on it. We've found that anti-Imperial sentiment is on the rise, and with this Rebellion recruiting—"

"Well, what do you propose we do?" another cut in.

"We, uh, we could… lower taxes, or build public works… ah, release political prisoners—"

"Like KAORIN!" Grand Moff Kimura howled, standing bolt upright. "I think she'd be an excellent choice!" Everybody at the table turned in their seats and stared at him. Even Darth Nochichi, floating menacingly in his corner, seemed a little nonplussed. "Er… are there any other suggestions?"

"Princess Kaori would be the last one to release," an Admiral said, "She's one of the few civilians who know what we've done to Alderaan. If anything, we should execute her."

Kimura sat heavily, beating his fist against the table before him and hanging his head. "My sweet Kaorin…" he groaned softly, "I hoped to save you and instead I've doomed you." Matsuyama didn't quite know how to proceed. Was the Grand Moff actually _crying_? "In… in conclusion," he tried tentatively, but was immediately cut off.

"**Actually, Kimura,**" Nochichi said, drifting forward, "**Something of that nature could be arranged**"

Kimura looked up, cautiously hopeful. "What did you have in mind?" the Admiral asked, steepling his fingers. Matsuyama quietly left the podium; his presentation was over.

* * *

"Have you had enough? HAVE YOU HAD ENOUGH?" the remote roared.

Chiyo stood unsteadily, covered in bruises and bravely biting back tears. The lightsaber trembled in her grip, following the remote as it hissed back and forth. Another bolt lashed out and bit into her thigh. "_Ow-haow!_"

"Okay, that's enough," Sakaki said. Her voice was completely level, but, standing next to her, Kagura could see that watching the exercise pained her. "Here… I have something that should help."

Chiyo sniffled and looked over. "What's that?" Sakaki stepped around behind her and gently snugged a blindfold to her face. "But—how will this help? How can I block the shots if I can't see them?"

"You're not supposed to use your sight," Sakaki explained. "The point isn't to learn how to block blasters… you have to be able to feel them coming. This exercise is to help you get a deeper connection to the Force. When you're connected to the Force, you can…" she trailed off, then finished weakly. "You can… _feel_." Okay, so she didn't quite know how to explain it. Chiyo was smart—she'd find it for herself.

"Well, how would my eyes help me stop something that's traveling at the speed of light anyway? Okay," the girl agreed, "Let's do this."

"That's the spirit!" Kagura commended.

"Ready for some more?" the remote jeered.

It slid silently in a semicircle around her, then hissed over her head. She didn't move, but her pigtails seemed to twitch a little of their own accord. _Damn, that's creepy!_ Kagura thought.

The blaster spoke and Chiyo effortlessly blocked it. Moving faster than it ever had before, the remote spun around her, spitting bolt after bolt-- and every single one of them found the azure blade barring their path. The blindfold, it seemed, had done the trick.

"Whoa…" Kagura said softly, "She's good."

"Frighteningly good," Sakaki agreed gravely. But then she smiled slightly. "I can only hope she'll hit a snag along the way or I'll be out of a job in no time!"

"Huh?"

"I was just a student myself. Sooner or later I'll have to send her to the one who taught Kenobi. He'll know what to do with her."

"Why didn't you go to him yourself?"

"I had to—"

"Holy cow! That's incredible!" Tomo suddenly cried, less than a foot behind them. Kagura jumped and went for her blaster, but Sakaki merely turned and regarded her calmly. "Can we help you?"

"Ahh, Yomi's just being a bitch," the Honorable Captain said dismissively. "She kicked me outta the ship because I dropped one of the plasma coils and…"

"You _what?_" Kagura looked at her, wide-eyed, "Aren't those dangerous?"

"Only if they break open…" Tomo turned her attention to Chiyo's practice. "Hey, can I give that a try?"

"What are you…" the soldier started, but Sakaki merely shrugged and said, "I don't see why not. Chiyo-chan, you can take a rest now."

Chiyo extinguished her lightsaber and undid the blindfold. As she walked unsteadily back towards her teacher, the remote called after her, "Yeah, you _better _hobble away!"

"Before anybody can ask," Sakaki said blandly, "No. It never shuts up. Tomo, you can use one of my lightsabers."

"You have more than one?" Chiyo asked.

"Master Kenobi taught me an archaic style," she explained. "This one is for my off hand." The weapon she handed to Tomo was about the same size as Chiyo's, but its shape suggested less of a curve to the blade. "Be careful with it."

Tomo hefted the saber, a crazed gleam coming into her eye. "Oh, you bet!"

Kagura and Chiyo backed away nervously as Sakaki tied the blindfold around the honorable captain's eyes. "Hey, c'mon!" the remote yelled. "Give me someone to shoot at, already! I'm losin' wood, here!"

"Okay…" Sakaki said when her new charge was ready. "Chiyo-chan, do you feel like a walk?"

"I'm sorry?" Chiyo snapped out of staring horrified.

"We should scout the area, look for provisions and see if anybody lives here. And I think a walk would do you good." It was difficult to see how she came to _that _conclusion; the poor girl was hardly standing.

"But… what about…?" Kagura faltered.

"You have fun with that," Sakaki called to Tomo as she and her student started towards the _Red Spirit_.

"Yeah!" Tomo cried, giving the amethyst lightsaber a few baseball bat-like swings, "I'm gonna smash this thing like it's a summer party! Let's go!"

The remote seemed to chuckle as it drifted up behind her…

* * *

Kaori's cell door opened once more but to her immense relief, it was not Kimura that came in. A young female officer, about her height and age, bearing a single hypodermic and a pair of cuffs. "Get up," she said, curt but with a tone of respect.

The Princess complied, looking at her captor oddly. There was something _familiar _about this woman, but she just couldn't place it. Short dark hair, blue eyes… but rack her brains as she might, she just couldn't recall who she was reminded of.

"What's this?" Kaori asked as the hypo pressed against her neck and injected with a sharp puff of air.

"Mild sedative," the officer replied. "They're not taking any chances after the guy you got with your chopsticks…"

A strange, giddy feeling spread through her. "How's he doing, anyway?"

"He's not paralyzed. Maybe you can sign his neck-brace."

An Imperial with a sense of humor? Hey, why not. The cuffs snapped across her wrists and she was lead out into the corridor. "Where are we going?" She was annoyed to note that her speech was a little slurred. Hopefully that would fade.

"Shuttle, that's all I know. Lord Nochichi is taking you with him on a business trip."

"A… business trip."

"Right." Now that her vision was blurred by the sedative, the woman looked even more familiar. It clicked suddenly; Kaori met her at one of the Rebellion bases! A quiet, unassuming girl. Your eyes would slide right over her and you wouldn't think twice about her. An expert in passing unnoticed.

What was her name? Damn… hiro? Something-hiro?

They stopped before a turbolift. "Here he comes," Chihiro (that was it!) said, indicating the row of numbers above the door. The car was swiftly approaching. "Well, good luck on your trip, Princess… and don't mess with your cuffs." Her eye twitched slightly. Was that a wink?

Before she could give it any more thought, the door hissed open to reveal the ebon menace of Darth Nochichi. She stepped into the lift with him unflinchingly and they immediately started streaking for the docking bay.

"I don't know if you think this will help," she said icily, "Ms. Sakaki will come to rescue me wherever you put me."

"**That would be convenient.**"

Matsuyama leaned over the technician's shoulder and stared at his console intensely. "It went in?"

"It wasn't damaged in the injection," the tech said. "I think it's good."

"So we're tracking?"

"We're tracking."

The Intelligence officer stood straighter and turned to watch the shuttle and its fighter escort leap into hyperspace. "Perfect."


	13. Night Falls

**13: Night Falls**

The shuttle bored towards SRS-174, flanked by a pair of Valkyries. All three were the Imperial standard gunmetal gray, pleasantly conventional and angular. The vessel just ahead of them, however, was nothing of the sort. It was a sleek black fighter, jacketed not in metal but a strange sort of armored flesh.

Within, Darth Nochichi brooded. He was on his way to confront another of these strange Jedi. _I'm coming to take your student, Kenobi,_ he turned a cold light-blue and watched hyperspace scroll by. _What do you think of that? Are you going to come back and stop me? Could you stop me if you did?_

When Nochichi had known Sakaki, she had been four feet tall, a gentle, slender child with large, somber eyes. How had she grown since last they met? He had no idea of how long humans took mature, in spite of living among them for many years. He was certain Nanashi was much stronger now, but equally certain that she was still no match for him.

Thinking of Kenobi's student made him consider his own, his color shifting to a more irritated orange. The Empress's Hand project wasn't turning out too well; he couldn't apply to much force (or Force) to her mind without damaging those qualities that would make her useful. Further, getting her to focus was like nailing Jello to a tree, and effectively angering her wasn't any easier; when hurt or frightened, she withdrew rather than lashing back.

This was a serious problem. Had he even wanted to, he wouldn't be able to teach her how to harness this bizarre 'Light Side' that some humans were attuned to. While it had been shocking to discover an entire aspect of the Force unknown to his people, he wasn't terribly impressed with its practitioners.

Finally, he laid the whole problem aside. He was certain that a solution would come to hand (or flipper) if he was only patient. Patience… he ground his needle-like teeth. Some things were hard for anyone, human or no.

* * *

Surprisingly enough, the walk _had _done Chiyo-chan good. As the sun slowly set and the air grew colder, Jedi and student continued their circuitous rout around the landing site. A thick overcast had rolled in; when night finally fell, it would be utterly pitch black.

Sakaki picked her way through brush, watching the girl scamper ahead of her. In spite of the lightsaber on her belt and the hunting blaster slung awkwardly across her back, she still managed to be astonishingly, mind-meltingly cute. Jedi though she may be, Sakaki still almost got the shivers looking at her.

They hadn't found much interesting. The forest was inhabited by bugs, birds and a race of stocky canines. "Ms.Yomi said we had provisions for three days," Chiyo called back. "So I don't think we'll have to go hunting."

Sakaki nodded, hiding the wave of relief that washed through her. She rather liked the dogs. Now, she knew that she should be trying to keep her student sharp, perhaps by flinging things at her with the Force or engaging her in debate (or lecture, as it would be at this point in her training.) But she just didn't have the heart for it at the moment.

_I'm really bad at this,_ she sighed inwardly, _How's she ever going to deal with Master? _Sakaki looked at her much be-scarred hand and smiled faintly. Hopefully Chiyo wouldn't be as thick as she had.

Suddenly, Sakaki stopped. Something felt… off. Not wrong, not frightening, just _off_. What in the world? She turned slowly to see one of the canines, a big one, regarding her from a small ridge. As she made contact with its dark, beady eyes, it growled, hackles raising.

"Master Sakaki!" Chiyo said urgently. "Should I…?" She had her hunting blaster leveled at the massive creature, balanced on the crook of her elbow. The Jedi urgently waved her down and held out her other hand to the beast.

"Come here," Sakaki said warmly. And sure enough, the great white canine padded down towards her, no longer growling, but still staring into her eyes with intense gravity. Chiyo lowered her blaster, watching raptly. Closer and closer the animal came, raising his huge snout to her outstretched hand. "That's it…"

Then harsh wind blasted over them accompanied by a blood-curdling roar that Sakaki had always associated with the Empire. A dark shape shot by overhead, leaving a strong smell of ozone in its wake. "Valkyrie?" Sakaki asked aloud. She cast a disappointed glance at where her new friend had been, but he'd fled into the forest.

"Was… did they repair the…?" Chiyo looked after it in confusion. "Are they leaving without us?"

"That was an Imperial fighter," Sakaki said calmly. "We'd better get back to the ship."

* * *

"That's right!" Kagura cried, waving her blaster in the air. "You'd better hide!"

Tomo lay on the ground at her feet, clutching at her leg. "Thank you! Oh, thank you! You saved me!"

"Um, no problem…" the soldier replied, embarrassed. "Sakaki'll probably want to find it, though."

"Screw that! That thing is vicious!"

"She'll be able to handle it. Maybe we should go see if Yomi will let us help her. I think we've wasted enough time with that stupid thing."

Kagura started back towards the _Red Spirit_, a still-shaken Tomo in tow. Night was falling swiftly; she hoped her rival would come back soon. As they neared the vessel, they could clearly hear Yomi's cursing. "Hey!" the soldier called, "Need any help?"

"No!" Yomi called angrily from inside, "I—" _CRASH! _"Dammit!"

It took some convincing, but finally Yomi let them get to work as well. Honestly, Kagura couldn't imagine being so protective of a simple ship, especially one that you seemed to hate so much and called such colorful names.

Chiyo had been right; the ship's viscera were a godforsaken mess. Though Kagura knew her way around spaceship repair, she was only barely able to figure out what went where. "Hey, toss me the hydrospanner, wouldja?" she asked. Yomi handed her the tool in question-- whose metallic shaft was bent about fifty-two degrees. "Uh…" She must have been in a _really _bad mood…

"Oh, sorry about that," Yomi said lightly, then placed the bent tool against a corner and wrenched it into a more serviceable shape. "Here you go."

"Th-thanks." Yep. Definitelya Valerian.

The three of them worked in peace and equanimity for a while, making great bounds. If it all went this well, they'd be able to leave the next day! But even so long ago, in a galaxy so far away, Murphy's Law still held.

"Give this to Tomo," the First Mate said, handing Kagura a smallish metal capsule.

"Sure," Kagura replied agreeably, then yelled, "Tomo! Catch!"

Tomo poked her head out of the cockpit just in time to see the engine part flying through the air towards her. "Wh- what did you--?" It bounced out of her hands and skipped across the deck.

"Sorry," the soldier said, returning to work. After a few seconds, she realized that the ship's crew was still staring at her. "What? What's wrong? It didn't break…"

"That…" Yomi answered, still stupefied, "Was very… very delicate… The shell didn't break, but inside it's cracked to hell."

"So? Can't we just…?"

"You broke it!" Tomo suddenly cried in something very similar to glee. "It was the only one we had and you broke it!"

"I-" Kagura looked back and forth between them. "We don't-?"

Yomi shook her head. "You broke it, you broke it!" Tomo yelled in singsong.

"So we're stuck?" The Valerian nodded. "Shit!" Kagura snatched the capsule up and spiked it against the deck. "Shit! _Shii-iit!_" Anger unspent, she stormed out into the gathering gloom.

Tomo stopped laughing at the soldier's misfortune as a realization hit her. "Hey…" she said, "That means we're stuck here too, doesn't it?"

"Tomo…!"

Outside, Kagura stared into the deepening sky, fighting down a lump in her throat. She'd let them all down. The disk in her back pocket, the only hope of the Rebellion, would never find its way to them. Her companions and the whole Rebellion were all screwed because she had to be a dumbass and throw the stupid part…

"I've gotta find a way to make it right," she said as a tear tracked down her cheek. It was completely against her nature, but she started to slide into despair. "Why the hell am I such a boor? I've gotta fix things! But what can I do? Where on this planet could anyone find a…"

Suddenly, a bright light fell across her face. She turned in startlement to behold a Valkyrie hovering silently (repulsors were much quieter than the main engines) above their artificial clearing, shining a spotlight down over the ship.

_And now the Imperials are here…_ she groaned inwardly. _Just perfect._ The Valkyrie shot away, presumably back towards whatever base the Imperials would have here. Wait—it was a _ship!_ It _flew!_ It obviously had whatever dingus she had broken!

Kagura checked her blaster and set out after it.


	14. Cut Adrift

**14: Cut Adrift**

Yomi's sharp voice rang out like a blaster-shot. "Just where in the HELL do you think you're going?" Kagura stopped and half-turned back. The Honorable First Mate stood framed in the _Red Spirit_'s hatchway in silhouette, arms akimbo and bearing pissed. "You're wounded, in case you've forgotten!"

"Ah, it's nothing!" Kagura grinned heroically and slapped her stomach, only cringing slightly. "I'm just goin' out to get that part you guys need."

"Alone?"

"Well, of course! I'm the one who screwed up, right?"

"If all the Rebels are as stupid as you, it's no wonder you're getting creamed!"

"And I suppose you have a better idea?"

Yomi rested a rather large weapon across her shoulders and started down. "They know where we are now, so I'm not sticking around." Tomo followed in her wake, for once blissfully silent. When she turned to close the hatch, Kagura caught the light glinting off of her big, scared eyes.

"Wha-? but—you guys'll just get in my way!" As the ship finally closed up, they were plunged into complete, starless blackness. "Name me _one thing _that either of _you _can do to help me!"

Yomi cleared her throat and flicked her flashlight on. Kagura sighed.

* * *

Sakaki and her student moved swiftly through the dark forest. The only sound was the cool wind rushing between trees and Chiyo's panicked breathing. The Jedi could feel their situation growing steadily worse and the ominous feeling she'd had concerning Kaorin was solidifying, but she swallowed her foreboding and plunged ahead.

"Oh, no…" Chiyo suddenly whimpered.

Sakaki put a hand on her shoulder and pulled her back. Spreading through the woods before them were many pairs of small, round green lights—stormtrooper night vision goggles. Sakaki was interrupted in her counting as the girl started shaking. "There's… there's so many…" she whispered tearfully. "How can we…?"

Sakaki stroked her hair. "It'll be okay," she said firmly, "I'm going to take care of it." Then she knelt next to her student and continued in a different tone, "But I can't do it without you. I need you to be strong. Can you help me, Chiyo-chan?"

Chiyo sniffed and nodded. "You'll be with me?"

"Always," Sakaki replied, the promise tasting sour in her mouth.

The Imperial search party was well-equipped and fully prepared, but nevertheless they managed to suffer some pretty bizarre accidents. One guy had evidently tripped on a rock and hit his head on a thick branch twelve feet overhead. Another was pummeled into submission by the butt of his own blaster. Two more somehow fell into each other with tremendous force, the resultant crack of helmets making even distant troopers jump. More than a few found their way into a raging river, only to wash up bedraggled and confused miles away.

And through the night a patch of even inkier darkness drifted, noting the troopers' misfortune with detached amusement. _Two of them! _Nochichi couldn't believe his good fortune. Nanashi's companion was obviously very untrained, mainly along for the ride as his men fell one by one. A blank slate, this, a more-than-worthy replacement for his useless student.

But finally he had seen enough. Hidden from both eyes and the Force, the monstrous hunter slid towards its quarry.

* * *

"Are you _sure _it's this way?" Tomo whined quietly. The three of them had paused to rest about a quarter-mile out from the _Red Spirit_. Kagura hadn't wanted to, but she was beginning to develop a limp and it was proving to be a longer haul than she had expected. "Those guys fly in straight lines. They aren't paid to waste fuel," she explained patiently. "Their base of operations can't be much further."

Yomi had her hand cupped over the top of the flashlight, only letting light strike a small area of ground as she swept it slowly about them. Having spent their whole lives on civilized worlds or in vessels, the total darkness was unsettling to all of them. If only those clouds would break…

"Why are we running _towards _their base anyway?" Tomo asked. "How many Imperials are there? Oh, this isn't worth the ten thousand…"

"We can handle them," Kagura said dismissively. "Especially—"

"Shh! Sh!" Yomi gritted suddenly, clicking off her flashlight. _Wow,_ Kagura realized, _I can't even see my hand in front of my face out here. Damn!_ But what she could see was two pairs of night-vision goggles approaching, occasionally blocked from view by trees or brush.

"Over here?" one of the troopers asked.

"Yeah. It was really freakin' bright. Are you sure you didn't see it?"

Kagura slowly took aim at one pair of goggles. She would only have one shot at each of them. Her finger tightened…

"Hey, is that--?" before the trooper could finish, he was jerked off of his feet and slammed against the bole of a nearby tree. "Uhf!" The other whirled about, but saw nothing to shoot at before a rock hurled itself out of the ground and clipped his helmet violently. Of course, our heroines didn't see any of this, but they were able to figure it out from the motion of the night goggles and awful noises.

There was a moment of stunned silence. "What just happened?" Yomi whispered.

"That… would be my rival." Kagura holstered her blaster and set out again. "I don't know _how _I'm gonna beat that… oh, well. Let's get going."

Sakaki didn't particularly enjoy spreading mayhem through the ranks of stormtroopers, but she had to admit it was a lot more agreeable than blastering them or hacking them apart with a lightsaber.

Unsurprisingly, Chiyo hadn't yet gotten the hang of leaping from branch to branch in total darkness, so her role in this escapade was mainly "hide in a tree and don't get shot." That was just fine, though it made her wonder what exactly Sakaki needed her for. Was that speech just intended to keep her from cracking up?

But as Sakaki bounded through the darkness like a gothic Tarzan, she was struck by a sudden ill feeling; Chiyo was in danger! The Jedi twisted in mid leap and started back towards her student, every sense straining. But there was nothing. As she drew near, Sakaki called out, "Chiyo-chan, are you alright?"

"Yeah! Did something hap—?"

Then, with a horrible rending sound, the tree that Sakaki had been jumping to suddenly wasn't there. The Jedi didn't miss a beat, igniting her amethyst lightsaber and landing lightly on the ground some twelve meters below. She didn't even have time to get her bearings before her weapon collided with another in a great, buzzing crash.

She skidded backwards, blinking to get the vermillion flash out of her eyes. As her vision cleared, she saw the dreadful form of Nochichi advancing in the sanguine light of his own blade. "You…" was all Sakaki managed.

"**It's been a long time, Nanashi**," he greeted. "**But it still isn't too late.**"

"F-forget it!" Sakaki's saber, nearly four feet long, hissed through the air as she pointed it towards the demon's face. Her voice leveled out as she continued. "I wouldn't join you then, and I won't now."

"**What a terrible waste,**" Nochichi sighed. "**When will you realize how weak this Light Side of yours really is?**"

Sakaki stood silently at the ready. Seeing the Dark Lord of the Sith had set off a cauldron of emotions in her, and she couldn't afford to give any of them a foothold. A Jedi was serene, even in the face of death.

"**You have a student of your own, now, I see.**" Chiyo cringed in her perch. "**I have a place for her as well. Why be unreasonable? You have to realize that you don't stand a chance against me.**"

"If you strike me down," Sakaki countered with more confidence than she felt, "I will become more powerful than you can ever imagine."

"**That's what your Master Kenobi said… before I killed him.**"

And that, as they say, was that. Nochichi jerked back and parried Sakaki's furious attack, his crimson blade easily catching every frenzied stroke. They parted just as suddenly, Sakaki taking a moment to regain her composure before the Sith Lord struck back.

As Chiyo watched from above, the proceedings took on an unreal aspect. Sakaki's grace, strength and skill shone through in her every move; her assault became an astonishingly beautiful dance that made it easy to forget that their lives were on the line. And this made it all the more jarring when their duel came to a sudden, brutal end.

Nochichi gestured with one of his flippers and the Jedi was yanked out of her attack and knocked viciously into a tree. The amethyst blade tumbled from her grasp and went out, leaving them bathed purely in red light. Sakaki stumbled to her feet, but a wall of Force pressed her against the trunk behind her.

"**This has been fun,**" he said, "**But I have no more time for you. Last chance, Nanashi.**"

Sakaki realized in horror that he'd been toying with her—at any point he could have reached out with the Force and snapped her neck. For an instant, she almost gave in, but… no. It just wasn't in her to surrender. She stared at him wordlessly as her lightsaber ignited itself and flew back towards her—

And clattered uselessly to the ground as Nochichi's blade slashed once. In an instant, all that remained was a deep score through the tree and her simple robes drifting to the ground. "**Well I'll be damned,**" Nochichi said in surprise, poking at the robes with his lightsaber, "**She actually did it!**"

"NOOOOO!" The Sith Lord turned at the shrill cry, neither surprised nor particularly concerned. Nanashi's young student crashed to the ground, no doubt injuring herself, but heedlessly regaining her feet and igniting her own lightsaber.

"**Blue…**" Nochichi said, regarding her with fresh interest. This one reminded him of someone. "**What do you think you're going to do to _me_?**"

"I'll… I'll kill you!" Chiyo cried.

Darth Nochichi laughed. It was about the most horrible sound one could imagine, and it chilled the young apprentice deeply. It made her realize how futile her move to attack had been and how pointless it would be to stand against Nochichi now. She slowly extinguished her lightsaber and fell to one knee.

"**That's more like it,**" Nochichi said, gliding towards her. "**Now, who is it that you remind me of…?**"

"_Chiyo-chan!_" The girl's pigtails swayed as her head rose. Was that…? "_Run, Chiyo-chan, run!_" She didn't pause to wonder whether she was just hearing voices in her head; the advice was sound enough. Chiyo sprang to her feet and tore away from the Sith Lord, ignoring the darkness, the forest, everything, just trying to put distance between herself and that awful red glow.

Unfortunately, she'd forgotten where the aforementioned raging river was, and sprinted headlong into it. Her gasp of surprise and confusion as she hit the icy water filled her lungs and she was swept away.

Nochichi drifted to the bank, contemplatively turning Sakaki's lightsaber over in his flippers. "**Blue…**" he murmured again. "**I'll be seeing that one again, I think…**"


	15. The Frenchman Lives!

**15: The Frenchman Lives!**

"Do you hear that?" Kagura asked quietly. Their hair ruffled as a faintly humming Valkyrie passed overhead. It wasn't using its searchlight, so it apparently had a destination in mind. "We're near."

The clouds had parted somewhat, admitting starlight that seemed oppressively bright after their long journey in darkness. Now they could see the running lights of an Imperial shuttle ahead; its engines growled as it prepared to take off. "They're moving everything," Yomi commented. "Guess our ship's really important to them. Why, I wonder?"

Kagura fingered the disk in her pocket and held her peace.

They finally came to the edge of the artificial clearing. Two stormtroopers stood outside of ship's hatch, white armor gleaming in the starlight, blazing goggles making them seem like monster insects. One of them glanced over when Tomo stepped on a branch, but he couldn't have heard much over the shuttle's purring engines.

"Okay…" Kagura took out her blaster. "There's really no graceful way to do this."

"What do you have in mind?" Yomi asked.

"Give me your flashlight." The soldier dialed its strength and radius to the maximum, gripped it firmly under her blaster, then walked confidently into the clearing. The stormtroopers looked up in surprise and yelled when their goggles couldn't compensate for the sudden brightness. Kagura coldly shot them both.

The hatch slammed down when the troopers within realized something was amiss, but unfortunately for them, their foe had posted herself at its base and blasted them with almost freakish accuracy as they became visible- kneecap, head, kneecap, head. Without pausing, Kagura advanced up the ramp.

"H-holy _shitake mushrooms!_" Tomo cried, making her partner jump. When the Honorable Captain wasn't making all kinds of noise, it was easy to forget she was there. "Did you—she—would you _look _at that! Have you ever seen _anything_…?"

Yomi had to admit that she hadn't. In her short stint in the Imperial military, even shorter career as a bounty hunter and interminable run as smuggler alongside Tomo, she had never seen such a display of skill or mercilessness. "Shut up," was all she managed to say. "Let's go, Tomo."

* * *

Meanwhile, deep in the forest, a group of three stormtroopers wandered, wondering why they couldn't raise anyone else on their comlinks. They were more than a little concerned—they'd heard blasters go off, random thumps and crashes, and seen strange lights through the trees that vanished before they could investigate.

"Where's that sodding shuttle?" the leader growled. "I can't see a thing in this damn helmet!"

"Do you hear something, sir?"

Sure enough, a very slight hiss reached their ears. "What do you guess that is?" the third said softly, "Sounds like a really small repulsorlift." A bolt lashed out of the darkness and struck his knee. "_OW! _What the--?"

"Commander, we're under fire!" the group's lead called, but his comm raised nothing but static.

"Your fellows can't help you now!" an artificial voice boomed, "I killed 'em all!"

Another bolt struck the second trooper's neck, making him yelp and stagger to the side. "Dammit! Where is that coming from?"

"From your doom!" the voice answered, "I'm going to slaughter the lot of ya!"

"How, by irritating us to death?" the lead barked back, pointing. The other troopers looked; a training remote buzzed through the trees nearby. They tensed but didn't draw immediately.

"I'll whittle ya down right!" the remote howled, sweeping towards them—right into the mouths of three blasters. It backpedaled frantically. "We- we can talk about this!"

* * *

"_Chiyo-chan…_"

Wha-? The girl snapped out of darkness to find herself drifting in an overcast void. A constant warm breeze played through her hair and tugged at her clothes as she hung impossibly over nothing. "What-- who's there?"

"_Chiyo-chan,_" that was definitely Sakaki-san's voice… but how could that be?

"Master Sakaki! Have I… am I…?"

"_Don't worry Chiyo-chan, you're still alive._" Sakaki faded into being, standing on nothing before her, every ounce as serene and strong as she had been in life. As soon as the Jedi fully appeared, her voice became clear. "They'll have a harder time getting rid of you than that."

Chiyo stared at her for a long moment, unwilling to believe what she was seeing. "How are you here? You… you died!"

"Well, I…"

"You said you'd be with me always!" Chiyo cried accusingly. "What am I supposed to do now? That monster wants to kill me and now I'm… I'm alone!"

"Well, I didn't plan on getting cut in two," Sakaki pointed out.

"Oh!" Chiyo put her hands over her mouth. "I'm- I'm so sorry! Are you okay? Does it hurt?"

"Um…" Sakaki blinked. "I'm fine."

"But what should I _do?_" her student asked, quickly returning to her original tack.

"I was getting to that," Sakaki laid a hand on the girl's head. "There is still somebody who can help you learn the ways of the Force. He lives on the swamp planet Dagobah."

"How can I find him, though?"

"He'll find you."

Chiyo tilted her head back so she could look at Sakaki's hand. "Is he the one who slashed up your hands?"

"Yes." Sakaki pulled her hand away and looked at it, a nostalgic light appearing in her eyes. "He's a little… disagreeable sometimes. You'll want to tread lightly around him for a while. And it might be good to bring a box of good cigars as well."

"Cigars?"

"He likes cigars. And you should, never, EVER call him cute."

"Um… okay." Sakaki started to fade again. "Wait! Where are you going?"

"I have no idea," the Jedi replied, unconcerned.

"But…" Chiyo's eyes started to fill with tears again. "Will I ever… see you again?" She threw her arms around Sakaki, burying her face in her soft brown robes. "Don't go!"

"There's nothing I can do. Chiyo-chan, I can't stay, but remember that the Force will be with you. Always." Just as she was almost gone, something seemed to occur to her. "Oh… and… please don't tell Kaorin that I visited you."

"Kaorin? Who--?" Chiyo's arms suddenly swung into each other as Sakaki vanished. "Master Sakaki! Don't go…" She curled into a ball as the omnipresent wind turned cold. "Please…"

* * *

"Hey! Commander, over here!"

A group of five stormtroopers trudged through the newly starlit night, armor sloshing from their ride down the river. None of them knew exactly what had happened- one by one they had been hauled into the air and chucked into the water by thin air. Though their training had conditioned them against physical hardship, they were pretty miserable.

"What is it?"

"A kid."

They gathered around the unconscious child, only recently washed up from the dreadful current. The one who had discovered her clipped his medical scanner back to his belt and stood. "She's weak, but she'll live."

"Is that the one Lord Nochichi was interested in?"

"He said a young woman…" the Commander seemed to shrug. "We should take her in anyway."

But as a soldier bent to pick her up, something growled out of the darkness. Five blasters snapped up towards a pair of beady, gleaming eyes. The great white dog padded majestically into the starlight to confront them, growling viciously.

"Shoot it."

"Uh, Commander?" The forest around them was suddenly filled with savage, unblinking eyes. A great chorus of gravelly voices rose with their leader's. "Maybe… we should withdraw…?"

"We're not having _any _luck today."

* * *

The smugglers followed Kagura up the ramp, unsure what they would find. The shuttle was only a little bigger than the _Red Spirit_, so surely it couldn't hold _that _many soldiers, right?

The soldier stood pressed against a bulkhead, casting tense glances deeper into the ship. A short ribbed corridor led to the cockpit, and before they hastily took cover, Yomi could see glimpses of white armor past some of the arches.

"What gives?" Tomo asked, "I thought you'd be done by now."

"It's a little harder when they start shooting _back_," Kagura said dryly. "I can't exactly—" She was cut off as a hail of green bolts issued from the corridor. "Yeah. That."

"Well, we have to get rid of them before the others come back…" Yomi took out her weapon. It was about the size of a carbine, but when she released a catch on its side, crossbow-like arms snapped out on either side of its barrel.

"Is that a Valerian bowcaster?"

"Yep," Yomi withdrew a quarrel from one of her pants' cargo pockets and inspected it minutely. The bowcaster's line was almost invisible, palpably humming with violent tension. Kagura doubted she could have moved it by putting all of her weight against it, but Yomi easily tugged it back with three fingers and fitted the quarrel.

"How's that going to help?" the soldier asked.

"Just wait and see!" Tomo replied proudly. "She's gonna tear it up!"

"What are _you_ so proud of?"

Yomi leaned into the corridor, but lurched back as another volley of blasterfire came. Once it had abated, she ever-so-carefully eased the bowcaster's snout around the corner and fired. There was a faint _whiickt!_ sound, an anticlimactic _tunk!_ and it was over.

Yomi's shot had carried such terrifying force that it had plunged all the way down the corridor, unhindered by the durasteel arches or the bodies hidden behind them. One trooper gave a startled cry of "Son of a bitch!" before staggering into the open and getting shot by Kagura.

The three troopers on the other side, after carefully weighing their options, came out with their hands in the air. Kagura stepped out and raised her blaster, but Yomi cuffed her out of it. "What are you thinking?"

"Look, they'll just—"

"I don't care. You three, into the brig!"

"Hoo, look at the big, bad stormtroopers," Tomo leered as they went by. "You got schooled by a bunch of girls! Oh, how do you like that?"

"Tomo, shut the hell up. I swear—I'm surrounded by lunatics!"

The brig's door hissed open, but before any of the prisoners could move towards it, something within gave a wild cry and a white-robed blur streaked out, scattering everybody. "Ms. Sakaki! You came!" Princess Kaori skidded to a stop in their midst and looked around, taking in everybody there. "Oh," she said flatly, "It's you."

"What's _that _supposed to mean?" Kagura cried. "And what in space are you doing here?"

The stormtroopers submissively filed passed Kaori into the brig and sat down.

"Aren't you gonna fight back?" Tomo taunted. "Come on, guys!"

"We're scared of her," one of them explained, pointing to Yomi.

"Oh, yeah. You haven't seen anything yet. She can get _crazy!_" She grinned and slammed the brig door. "O-_kay!_ So do we get a reward for rescuing the Princess?"

"We? And what did you do to help?" Yomi growled.

"Um… comic relief!"

The two rebels left Tomo and Yomi to their argument. "Uh, we came with Ms. Sakaki, though. She's around somewhere," Kagura said. "Got the plans, too."

"Ms. Sakaki's _here?_" For an instant, Kaori was overjoyed, but a cool, regal bearing quickly slid over her features. "I'll look forward to seeing her, then," she continued in a practiced tone, "Shall we go?"

Kagura grinned in relief. They had the part, they had the plans and they had the Princess. For once, everything was looking up. "Of course, your majesty."


	16. Mihama's Melancholy and Kagura's Cure

**16: Mihama's Melancholy and Kagura's Cure**

With a whisper of repulsors, the _Red Spirit_ drifted from its crater, shaking off its coating of grit. A cheer rose from Kagura and Tomo, who'd been banished from the ship until the repairs were finished. "Great!" Kagura crowed as their ride settled back down, "All we need to do now is find Ms. Sakaki and the runt, and…"

Something growled behind them, making both women whirl and draw their blasters as one. A huge, yellow-white canine sat on his haunches before them, majestic in the milky, predawn light. Chiyo leaned on his great flank, looking rather like a drowned, battered, strung-out rat. "Thank you…" she said softly. The dog licked her face tremendously, almost knocking her off her feet and then, casting a disdainful look at the blasters, padded off into the mist.

"Ch-chiyo-chan?" Kagura holstered her blaster and ran to the girl's side. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah," Tomo added, "You look like crap!"

Chiyo sagged into the soldier's arms without answering. "Shit…" Kagura held her out and shook her gently. "Hey, what about Ms. Sakaki? Where--?" They made eye-contact. "Shit!"

"What? Shit, what?" Tomo asked frantically.

"We're going," the soldier said, scooping Chiyo up and starting towards their ship. She seemed impossibly tiny and fragile. "Come on."

"But… what about…?" the honorable captain looked back into the forest, then at Kagura as she mounted the ramp. "You don't mean—hey! Kagura, what's going on?"

* * *

Two vessels met the _Red Spirit _in orbit, slender blockade runners similar in design to the ill-fated _Lightning_, but with a more martial, predatory look to them. The stubby pink _Spirit _was swallowed by one of these sleek black raptors before they vanished into hyperspace.

In the _Spirit_'s main room, Kagura sat across from the Princess, nervous as she never had been before. "I'm sorry it happened like this… I, I shouldn't have let her leave. I'm sorry—"

"Don't." Kaori closed her eyes and leaned back in her chair, blowing out a long, soft sigh as tears tracked down her cheeks. "You couldn't have stopped her."

The ship shook slightly as they set down in the bay.

"Listen, when you get off this ship, they're gonna want you to be Princess Kaori, Light of the Rebellion. If, if you're not up to it, I can tell them…"

"Do you know why I loved her?" Kaori said, cutting her off. "It was because she was so stoic and strong. Ms. Sakaki was invincible… you could have put the galaxy on her back and she wouldn't have bent." Her eyes opened and she gave a small, watery smile. "If I can't live up to her example, what kind of an admirer would I be?" The persona of Princess Kaori, light of the Rebellion and heroine of the galaxy drifted down over her like a sheet as she stood. "They're waiting for us."

And so Kaori descended into the docking bay, every inch the defiant, noble Rebel Princess their hosts were expecting. Kagura and Chiyo flanked her, the former adding to her imposing bearing, the latter vanishing in her shadow.

The blockade runner's captain stood at the base of the ramp, surrounded by soldiers in full ceremonial dress. "It's good to have you back, Princess!" he hailed, "The _Katana _and the _Quicksilver _are at your service!"

"Good afternoon, Captain Green," she returned coolly. You'd never guess that she'd just had her heart torn out. "Thank you for your timely arrival."

Green removed an envelope from his pocket and held it out to her. "I was told to give this to you. Orders from the Top." You could hear the capital T in his voice.

"On paper?" Kaori took the envelope and turned it over in her hands.

"It's his trademark, you know."

"Whose?"

"The Professor's. I'll get you a private room to read that in."

"Thank you."

As Green and Kaori started away, Tomo and Yomi mounted the ramp down. There followed a sound like a turnstile from Hell and suddenly they were staring into the barrels of forty blasters. "YEEP!" Tomo leapt behind the First Mate and shrieked, "I'm too cute to die!"

"Um…" Yomi shuffled backwards. "O-okay, we can wait in the—"

"No, Yomi!" Tomo yelled, stepping around her and drawing the lightsaber Sakaki had given her. "Don't give them any ground! I'll protect you with my super rolling defense!"

"Your super rolling--?" Yomi clubbed her before she could ignite the weapon and dragged her back into the ship. "Sorry, everyone, my friend's a little…"

"Oh, for--! Look, they're the, ah, the professionals we hired! Let 'em come!" Kagura barked. The rebel soldiers stood down, and, with much shaking of heads and mutters of "super rolling…?" filtered away to their other duties.

"That's right," Tomo said smugly, swaggering as she descended to the deck. "Captain Takino triumphs again!"

Yomi hit her.

* * *

The _Katana _was a tight ship. Everything that needed doing was being done by the crewers who could do it best. Unfortunately for Kagura, that meant that she wasn't really needed for anything, and was thus reduced to the irritating status of "useless guest" for this trip. Normally she would have just kicked back, but this time she'd found a worthwhile project for herself… Chiyo-chan.

The Tatooinian girl had been wandering the vessel pretty much at random, still dressed in her moisture-farmer's garb. Her silence and despondent gaze made many of the crewmen wonder if their ship hadn't picked up a ghost. Apart from occasional warding sign, she was pretty much ignored.

"The hope of the future, right, Rival?" Kagura said to the air, watching Chiyo drift on by her room, "The last Jedi, huh? Well, this can't stand. Let's get her back on her feet, eh?"

The soldier set out and intercepted her target in a dark corridor along the "bottom" of the ship. "Hey, runt," she said, gruffly but not unkindly, "We're gonna put you to use."

"Huh?" Chiyo's voice was a little gravelly from disuse. Bad sign.

"This ship doesn't need any more ghosts, but it does need is a few good pilots."

"Pilots? But I don't—"

"Don't worry about it! It's not like we're gonna throw you in the cockpit right away. Just give the simulators a try, eh? It'll be better than just pining away, right? Come on, give it a shot."

"I… uh… okay…"

"That's the spirit!"

Kagura led her young charge to the simulator room, which, in spite of the designers' most determined efforts, still had the ambiance of a video arcade. Off-duty pilots gathered to test their skills against each other and heckle trainees. All the place needed was a bar and they'd be set.

"New recruit!" Kagura said to the elderly simulator master, Akagawa. He raised a hand to his ear and replied, "Eh?" The crew affectionately referred to Akagawa as the "Deaf Guy." Many years ago, he'd been a top-flight pilot for the Old Empire, but nowadays all he was good for was to help train the next (or the next three, rather) generation(s).

"NEW… RECRUIT!" Kagura repeated, slowly and loudly. "I NEED A SIMULATOR!"

"Geez, you don't have to shout…" Akagawa squinted through his sunglasses at Chiyo. "Isn't he a little short?" If it were as catchy as Deaf Guy, he might also have been known as the Blind Guy.

"Of course not!" the soldier gave Chiyo a little push towards a vacant simulator. "Can we use that one?"

"Eh?"

"THAT ONE!"

"Oh, go ahead."

The simulator hissed open upon their approach, and Chiyo looked at it in trepidation. "But, but I don't know how to…"

"Did you have a skyhopper back home?"

"Yeah, but—"

"Same thing, but with more guns! Go get 'em!"

"But—!" Chiyo's last protest was cut off as the soldier shoved her in and dogged the hatch shut. Kagura stood back and crossed her arms, looking up to the screens set above it. A few of the pilots had witnessed the 12-year-old being crammed into an advanced simulator and came over for a laugh.

And sure enough, Chiyo's first skirmish was shaky at best. Kagura noticed the girl make almost every rookie mistake she had ever heard of; it was painful to watch, though the pilots seemed to enjoy the show.

But then…

Impossibly, Chiyo-chan _got the hang of it_. Before her virtual enemies could lay in the final blow, she was suddenly weaving expertly around their shots and returning fire with deadly accuracy. The laughter and jeering of the pilots became whoops and cheers as the faux Imperial fighters burst one-by-one like popcorn. Finally, the Imperials fled ending the simulation.

Chiyo emerged from the simulator to stunned silence. "So… uh, how did I do?" she asked.

"That… was…" one of the pilots stammered.

And then all at once they were surrounding her, full of greetings, congratulations and general good tidings. Chiyo put a hand to the back of her head and giggled a little, still adorably modest.

"That was abso-bloody-lutely incredible!" one crowed, "It took me years to get that good!"

"You were never that good, Mike!" another yelled.

They broke into a good natured argument as the lot of them, a bewildered Chiyo-chan in tow, adjourned for the "Juice Bar." (Pilots weren't allowed alcohol except for special occasions; there was no telling when they might have to scramble.)

"Well, that worked out," Kagura said in their wake. "You made about twenty friends, I'd say… have something to do now…" She walked slowly back to her own room, lost in thought. Kaori had seen to herself, Chiyo would probably be all right now…

Now to address the horrible, gaping, hollow feeling in her _own _chest. Kagura flopped backwards into her bed and stared at the ceiling. "Didn't even remember me…" she sighed. "Damn. I'll miss you, y'great dark lump."

* * *

"Here they are," Mike said with a touch of pride. He led Chiyo into the _Katana_'s hangar bay, past the _Red Spirit_ and a few shuttles to the quick-launch rack. A little more than a dozen fighters hung there, their violent forms eager to leap out into the night. "Most of us have to settle for Valkyries, same as the Imperials," her guide said, gesturing vaguely at the rack, "Don't get me wrong, there's nothing _wrong_ with them, but check this…"

Along the bottom row there was a group of five ships the like of which Chiyo had never seen before. They were longer and more rounded than the Valkyries, their black paint offset by panels of pearly gray. "What are those?"

"Secret contract with Incom, Chiyo-chan." Mike said, "Super Seraphs! I just got cleared to fly one a week ago."

"Wow! That's great!"

"You might get my spot, though, 'cause… hey, are you all right? You look a little pale."

"I'm fine…" Chiyo glanced out into hyperspace. "I just… something's wrong."

"What do you mean? Is it—huh? Did your hair just move?"

"What?" the girl raised a hand to one of her pigtails. "I don't think so. I have an ominous feeling, though…"

"Well, don't worry. The _Katana_'s got stealth gear, so the Imperials'll never be able to find us. We haven't been attacked in—"

And then, with a horrifying lurch, the both blockade runners were ripped from hyperspace and set upon by a hail of green bolts. Bearing down on them was a gunmetal gray monstrosity—the _Implacable_, back for revenge!

"Well, I'll be," Mike said.


	17. Second Thoughts

**17: Second Thoughts**

Chiyo sat alone in the _Katana_'s observation deck. She looked even more like a ghost now, pale, wrapped in bandages and draped over with a white blanket, her eyes vacant and reflecting the stars rushing by. Her pigtails were undone, which, coupled with her expression, made her look about four years older.

Had it all really happened? She had a hard time believing it. The last four hours (especially the two-and-a-half spent unconscious) were a colorless smear in her memory.

Something prodded at her attention. "Hey," Mike greeted, too casually. She glanced over to the older pilot, who leaned on his crutch in the entryway. "The others wanted me to give you this."

He held out a small golden figurine of what looked like a mechanic raising a wrench on high with a bellow of righteous fury. She accepted it gravely with both hands, silently giving him a questioning look.

"For returning in the single worst condition we have ever seen in a working starfighter or living pilot," he orated, "The pilots of the _Katana_ award you with this: the Mechanic's Nightmare."

The girl smiled wanly. "Thank you. I… wish I could think of a more entertaining acceptance speech…"

"I'll make something up for you," Mike said. "You look like you need to be alone for a while…?"

"Thanks."

"No. Thank you. We'd've been screwed without you, Chiyo-chan." He hobbled away, leaving her to her contemplation. Her fingers closed around the ridiculous figurine. There was physical proof, now… as if the tingly burns all down the left side of her body weren't proof enough.

_The world became a blast of terrible green light and twisted around her. She bounced painfully across the deck, suddenly, incomprehensibly surrounded by a shrieking, blurring metallic cage-- THUD! She came to rest, her vision a solid sheet of purple, feeling the _Katana _shudder through the cold flooring pressed against her cheek._

_"Chiyo-chan!" Mike called weakly._

_She regained her feet uncertainly, eyes clearing slowly, gagging on a sour miasma like blaster-smoke but much, much stronger. "Mike!" she yelled back, scrubbing a forearm across her eyes. "What—what happened?"_

_"Damn… my leg…" she found him pinned under a fallen scaffold; the quick-launch rack had been blasted out of its moorings and wrenched apart. It was a solid structure, but the designers hadn't counted on a near-direct hit from a turbolaser._

_"Chiyo-chan, I can't... dammit!" he tugged futilely at his leg. "Get—take my fighter!"_

_"What?"_

_"My Seraph! It's the one on the end. Take it!"_

_"But—"_

_"Get going! And… and the Force be with you."_

"I guess it was," Chiyo said with a tiny laugh, rubbing the statuette with her bandaged thumb. If this was how things went _with _the Force, she didn't want to see the alternative. It was just striking her now how remarkably stupid taking the fighter had been; very little training, no experience, and she hadn't even had a flight suit.

Could it be her fate, then, to be some kind of warrior? Everything that had happened to bring her to this point seemed incredibly unlikely. Still, the notion of _this _being her fate didn't appeal to her much.

_Don't think. Don't think. Don't think._

_The Seraph wound and whirled through a maze of bolts, never a pause or misstep. Chiyo's small hands clutched the yoke grimly, moving with a surety that was an absolute lie. Her mind was in chaos, tethered only loosely to anything remotely approaching reason._

_Had anyone else flown into a dogfight in her panicked state, they would be vapor in an instant. The rules are a little different for Force-attuned prodigies, though. Gray Valkyries fell under her guns again and again, vanishing in orange clouds fueled by the lives of their pi—_

_Don't think!_

_A soft curtain of menace surrounded her, and where she felt it harden was where the bolts or torpedoes were streaking in, where she felt it abate were the backs of unsuspecting Imperial fighters. The Force was with her. The Force was guiding her in her grim task._

_Another and another—_

Chiyo sighed. Her hands were still shaking, adrenaline dancing a nauseous jig in her chest. _I'm not built for this,_ she thought disconsolately. _Is anyone?_ She thought of the Super Seraph in the bay below her, and the techs busily painting seven Valkyries under the canopy.

Seven! Seven lives! And that was leaving aside the Star Destroyer.

_"Listen! Seraph pilots!" Kaori's voice piped in her ear suddenly. "We can't break the Star Destroyer's shields! You have to use the Giant Killers!"_

_"The _what_?" Chiyo yelped, evading a torpedo and blasting it as it passed._

_"Metanuclear device," a tech explained on her frequency. "Won't do jack to their shields, but if you can open a little hole and drop it through, it'll ruin their day. When you're ready, it's the yellow button."_

_"The one with the smiley face on it?"_

_"Smiley…? Hold on-- Mike? … Yeah, the idiot put a smiley face on it."_

A smiley face. What kind of a madman…? Chiyo glanced at the Mechanic's Nightmare and sighed inwardly. Oh. That kind.

_Purple lightning leapt from behind them and crawled over Porkins's fighter, engines bursting and armor crumpling in an instant. Flickering between the remaining Seraphs and looping back was a strange dark fighter they'd never seen before._

_"Nochichi-!" Chiyo realized with a surge of panic. The Force threatened to flee her as they closed on the Star Destroyer. "Ignore him!" Wedge barked, "Go! Fire!"_

_Both poured laser fire and torpedoes into the patch of shield before them, but the barrier wasn't giving. At the last instant before they pulled up, Wedge loosed his Giant Killer, engulfing both of them in its terrific but futile blast. "Damn!" he gritted, "We had the gap! Impacted off the side…"_

_Lightning streaked past Chiyo as she twisted back towards the thinning explosion. Nochichi shot past her again, spraying purple death onto a rebel Valkyrie on his way. "He has me!" she realized._

_Impossibly maneuverable, the alien fighter whirled and spewed another crackling bolt that missed Chiyo by meters and spidered over the Star Destroyer's shields. The next bolt would catch her… but it never came._

_Was she listening to the Force, or just a reckless lunatic? Her fighter plunged through the gap left by Nochichi's attack, the closing shields clipping its tail off. The Seraph's targeting countermeasures released a greenish, glittery cloud to billow within the bubble of the _Implacable's_ shields._

_Gunners frantically brought their weapons to bear in the sudden sensor-dark, but it was too late._

_Before Chiyo realized she had fired, golden fire was clawing the mighty vessel's hull apart, ballooning hungrily out into the void. She stared in numb shock as the molten flames crashed against the inside of the shield above like waves on a breakwater and came rolling back towards her._

_"Oh, son of—"_

Chiyo winced from the memory. If she'd pulled that stunt even in her father's time, the radiation burns would have killed her. If her shields had been any lower, she'd have been vaporized. As it was, her injuries would only be a discomfort for a few more days.

"So," she heard Tomo's voice near the entrance, "We get a reward for rescuing you, right?"

"More than your wildest dreams," Kaori replied dismissively, closer.

"I don't know, I've had some pretty wild dreams," Tomo said, passing the door, "There's this one where I'm dressed up like Bruce Lee and—"

"We can work it out later. I'll be seeing you."

"Yeah, see ya."

Kaori entered silently and sat next to the wraithlike girl, holding the Professor's orders in one hand. She was dressed in black, mourning for both her world and Sakaki. Some people were worse off than Chiyo. "Hey," she said.

"Princess," Chiyo acknowledged flatly.

"So, you were… you were Sakaki's apprentice," Kaori ventured. She'd left her regal bearing somewhere, apparently. Chiyo looked towards her, eyes focusing and softening. "Did you know her well?"

"Not too… she was very quiet. Kind, though. And strong."

"Just how I remember her." In spite of years of experience as a diplomat, Kaori didn't know how to proceed, exactly. "Did you see her… read a letter while you were together?"

"A letter? I, I think so…" Chiyo thought back. It was so long ago already!

"How did she react? If you don't mind my asking…"

Ah. She remembered, now, the flicker of sadness that had crossed Sakaki's features. "I couldn't tell," the girl lied, smiling slightly, "You know how stone-faced she was."

The Princess chuckled. "Yeah." They sat in silence for a few minutes before she spoke again. "I had orders to bring her to see the Professor on Coruscant, but… well. You're her only student; would you like to come instead?"

"Yes," Chiyo nodded slowly. "I'd like that very much."

"The Professor won't know what to expect. I think you'll make quite an impression on her."

"Her?"

"I can't imagine a guy using this bunny rabbit stamp."

"It looks familiar…" Chiyo couldn't place it, though. On Tatooine?

"Why are you up here? You should be celebrating with the other pilots."

The girl shrugged and turned her gaze back out to the viewports. "Don't feel much like celebrating..."

"That won't do. You've saved everyone on this ship, Chiyo-chan. I hereby order you to at least visit the party before they're all too drunk to stand."

* * *

"Isn't that nice." Yomi commented as she shut down their room's messenger.

"Eh?" Tomo looked up from her magazine. She'd been surprisingly quiet ever since SRS-174; it was starting to get on the First Mate's nerves in fact. In large part, she was probably just sulking because Yomi wouldn't let her hit the Rebel's victory party and its free-flowing spring of alcohol. "What's up?"

"There's a Valerian contingent on the _Quicksilver_. They just invited me to their victory dinner," the room's light glinted off of her glasses menacingly, "And I'll _not _be out-eaten this time!"

"Oh, cool! I get to watch you totally pig out and make yourself sick again!" Tomo cried, leaping to her feet. "Can I come?" (Was that sarcasm? It was hard to tell with her sometimes.)

"Tomo, we Valerians take victory dinners very seriously. It's in bad form to show up if you don't think you can win."

"Win?" A light went on in Tomo's eyes.

"Of course! It's a competition. The one who eats the most…" Yomi trailed off as she realized she had just ensured the Honorable Captain's attendance. "Crap. Well, the invitation said I could take two guests…"

"I know just the person!"

* * *

Matsuyama stomped into the Intelligence Office, cursing the fact that he couldn't slam the automatic door behind him. The four analysts under his command were lounging about the office; they hadn't had much to do lately.

"How'd your meeting with Madame Director go?" Kenichi, one of his subordinates, asked.

"About as goddamn well as you think!" Matsuyama snarled, stalking past him and slapping a hand against the viewport that dominated one wall. "That Iceheart is such a psychotic bitch! It's no wonder she and the Empress get along so well!" He could get away with saying things like that-- who would rat on him? Imperial Intelligence? "And she's so cocky! It's like she has a Super Star Destroyer buried somewhere!"

"Sorry, boss."

"Yeah," he sneered, slowly returning to calm, "Well, so am I! Sometimes I think all the higher ups are evil bastards and all the lowlies are morons!"

"What about us?" the analyst asked. Matsuyama stared at him for a long moment.

"I got a report from the 'spin-meisters,'" Shiro, another analyst, said, hoping to break the tension, "They have our official line for the press on Alderaan."

"This, I gotta see," Matsuyama growled, snatching the hard-copy up. "I don't know how they're gonna make us look good on this one. We blew up a bloody harmless planet and killed millions of innocent people!" As he flipped through it, though, his eyes strayed out towards the ruins of Alderaan and a strange tone crept into his voice. "How can they possibly justify that?"

Sitting quietly at her desk, unnoticed as usual, Chihiro watched him sharply.

* * *

"It's on!" Tomo gritted.

"Oh, you know it!" Kagura shot back.

They faced each other over a table that was about a foot too high for them, standing tensed as if they meant to physically attack the other. Their bowls were absolutely loaded by their usual standards, but the Valerian that dished them out had done so with a condescending smile that neither could stand.

Yomi hadn't been kidding; the twenty or so Valerians that gathered about the table were grimly determined to be the Victory Dinner's victor. Yomi glowered at her bowl, twice the size of Tomo or Kagura's, with an intensity she rarely wore. "I will _not _be out-eaten," she growled. "All the limiters are _off!_"

Her prospects didn't look too good, however. The average Valerian was about six-and-a-half feet tall, four-hundred pounds of whalebone and sinew, and yet still able to eat as much as a creature twice their size. Yomi's partner had been right to call her a scrawny midget.

(How a ship could stock for these events is unclear, but they always managed, no matter how many battles they went through. Some said it was the Force, others said it was the work of the Spacefarer's God Klono, still others said that it was because Valerians will eat _anything_.)

Even the hypercompetitive, never-say-die Tomo knew that she didn't stand a chance against these goliaths, instead setting her sights on the more manageable goal of defeating Kagura. "Say your prayers!" she warned the soldier, grinning.

By coincidence, that was just when Commander van Buskirk stood at the head of the table and said Valerian grace. "Thanks. Eat."

And so they did. Prodigiously.

Kagura and Tomo locked eyes and laid into their stew with all of their might! They worked at a rate that they wouldn't have even considered if not surrounded by gorging Valerians. One bowl, two bowls, three…

Three-and-a-half…

Three-and-three-quarters…

Ugh.

Tomo sagged back in her chair and glanced over to her First Mate, who was still going strong (though with much better table manners than her countrymen.) "Wow…" she murmured, feeling new respect for her partner.

"Should we call it a draw?" Kagura asked, poking at her stew without enthusiasm.

"Aah, I wasted you and you know it."

"We came up even."

"You wish, you rebel scum!" Tomo didn't expect any kind of reaction; she'd said it _relatively _quietly. It was a few seconds before she noticed with a creeping sensation that every Valerian up and down the table had stopped and was staring at her, except for one guy on the end that was almost as small as Yomi. (He needed the time to catch up anyway.) It then occurred to her that 'rebel scum' wasn't the best insult to use when surrounded by 500-pound Rebels.

"She- she didn't mean it that way!" Yomi said quickly.

"How did she mean it, then?" one of the Valerians asked dangerously.

"Um… she meant it whatever way won't get her dismembered."

"Oh, good save," Tomo said sarcastically.

"Hey, shut up, you idiot! I'm doing this for you!" The Valerians stared balefully for a few seconds until van Buskirk stepped in and saved the day. "Hey, guys, your stew is getting cold!" And so the race was on again.

"God, you moron," Kagura said, shaking her head.

"Hey, I'm Yomi and I're the smartest people on this whole ship!" Tomo said. "You don't see us fighting the most powerful force in the galaxy for no reason!" Even Tomo couldn't tell if she really meant what she was saying or if she was just trying to piss the other off.

"No reason?" Kagura was so surprised that she forgot to be angry.

"Seriously! What do you guys hope to do? Your whole—"

"_Don't!_" Kagura's first syllable slashed through clamor of the Victory Dinner and actually caused a momentary lull. "…think that we're _anything _like you… you grin-and-bear-its!"

"Grin and…?" Tomo stared in bafflement.

"You think that just because you're doing fine things don't have to change! Worthless cattle like you let the Empire trample all over people, just grinning and bearing it!" She sat glaring for a few seconds, but just when Tomo was about to speak she exploded again. "_Alderaan_! Should those people grin and bear being reduced vapor? God, Takino, you make me sick!" Kagura stood, bowed curtly to van Buskirk and left in a huff.

"I, uh, I think it might be the stew…" Tomo said weakly after her. As she watched the soldier go, she felt troubled in a way she never really had before. "Hey…" she asked softly, "Yomi?" Her partner didn't respond, so absorbed in the contest was she.

Tomo leaned back and closed her eyes.

* * *

Darth Nochichi touched down on the dark floor of his chamber. A panel beneath him _clunked_ into place and lit up, signifying contact. The Dark Lord of the Sith steeled himself; there were things in this galaxy even _he _feared.

A towering hologram bloomed before him, filling the room with eerie blue light.

"**What is thy bidding, my master?**" Nochichi asked.

"First, that you wish me a Happy Birthday," Empress Yukari replied.

There was an appreciable pause. "**Happy… Birthday,**" Nochichi said dutifully.

"I can't believe it! No one around here remembers my Birthday! I'm the friggin' Empress, for crying out loud! And that lousy Nyamo is still showered with presents every year… I don't know why I stuck my neck out and made her Headmistress of that stupid Academy, anyway!"

Darth Nochichi waited for her to wind down. After about four more minutes, he announced, "**I have found the daughter of Mihama.**"

"What?"

"**Yasuhiro Mihama's daughter.**"

"She's the… the…?"

"**Yes.**"

"Well, fine then. Kill her," the Empress commanded airily, waving a hand in the air. "She can only get in the way."

"**She could be a powerful ally…**"

"But Mihama was such an _annoying_ adversary. She probably takes after him."

"**She's every bit as much mine as she is his.**"

"You're not going soft on me, are you, Nochichi?" the Empress asked slyly.

"**Mihama will join us or die,**" Nochichi vowed. The Empress crossed her arms, unconvinced. "**If she so much as raises a hand against me…**" the Sith Lord glowed violently red. "**I'll cut the damn thing off!**"

* * *

(A/N: Foreshadowing? Me? _Never!_

Thanks to Mr. Zaitcev for faithful and reliable beta-reading, as well as averting the disaster of chapter seven.

Thanks to Section Eight for helpful suggestions, constant amusement and general inspiration. Incidentally, he figured out who Ayumu was fourteen chapters ago; c'mon guys, she always has her head _in the clouds?_ Er-hem?)


	18. The Professor

"_Every single day, more than 30 million people pass through Coruscant's Customs stations. Less than one percent of one percent of them even have their belongings searched. Customs agents just don't have the time to do more than glance at your picture and wave you through. This calls for contemplation."_

-Insurgent's Cookbook (banned)

* * *

**18: The Professor**

_Kagura staggered, her ribs creaking with each agonizing breath. The unforgiving floor hurt her bare feet every time she set them down, but she barely noticed it amid the other aches and pains she'd picked up. It was all she could do to keep herself standing and in a fighting stance._

_Times like this, she really regretted lying about her age to get into the Academy._

_She tried to focus, to force her battered body to mount a counterattack, but the next blow was already rushing in. She blocked expertly—unfortunately, her tired, beaten arm just refused to stand against that dreadful kick. Her feet skidded across the rough floor and she fell with a painful thump._

_Her opponent bent and held out a hand to her. Kagura moved to swat it away, but meeting the other's kind blue eyes cooled her anger. Accepting the proffered hand, the young recruit regained her feet._

_"Some day, Sakaki." She smiled tiredly. "Just you wait."_

_Sakaki gave a faint smile in return, without a hint of condescension._

Kagura snapped back to the present. Remembering the sweet, humid air of Delnor, she almost choked as she drew a cold, smoggy breath. The sun was distant and aloof, hidden by a solid sheet of cloud and distorted by the planetary shield far above.

Coruscant. The cultural and political center of the Empire, indeed, of all civilization. Coordinates zero-zero-zero. And, in this soldier's humble opinion, it was also a big, filthy concrete wasteland that the rest of civilization could keep for all she cared.

She stood with Tomo and Yomi on a walkway over the Imperial Academy's sprawling main campus. Where she'd been watching, a large group of shirtless men and a few halter-clad women were doing forms on a broad, open-air ledge.

"Some real lookers over there, eh?" Tomo commented, waggling her eyebrows.

Kagura winced in surprise; the Honorable Captain had probably stomped up on her with all the grace and stealth of a wounded Dewback, but she'd been lost in thought again. "Sure," she replied disinterestedly.

It was nice that Tomo had forgiven her almost instantly for blowing up at the Valerian's dinner. If she didn't know any better, she'd think that the smuggler was warming to their cause.

"I still can't believe we got in here so easily!"

"Neither could I, honestly. I thought I was gonna have a heart attack when the guy looked at Kaori twice."

"I mean, I thought we were a bigger deal than that."

"Well, we were a big deal five sectors away. The galaxy's a big place."

Tomo grinned. "We'll just have to try harder next time, then."

Kagura stared at her for a moment, then chuckled and grinned back. "Sure. Let's do that."

"If we knew it was that easy to get in, we'd probably have come through here more often, huh, Yomi?"

The First Mate didn't respond. She was still a little sore over being "deputized" at blaster-point to make this trip, having her precious _Red Spirit_ practically torn apart out of under her and rebuilt, and then, as if that weren't insult enough, having her forged documents identify her as being from J'T'P'Tan. She _was _big enough to be a Valerian, dammit!

"How long d'ya think the meeting will take?" Tomo asked, watching the martial artists alongside her friend. "I'm getting kinda nervous for some reason."

"Nervous? Relax. Nobody knows we're here."

* * *

"Yep, she's _definitely_ on the Academy grounds," Kenichi said. "We don't have a fix on what room, exactly, but she's in the Faculty Offices. Don't think she's moved in a while."

"Daring little Princess, 'ey?" Shiro asked, leaning on the back of his chair. "I guess this means someone in the Academy's sour… what do you think, boss?"

"Eh?" Matsuyama was lost in his own work.

"Oh, our quarry is running around on the Imperial capital. What's so important over there?"

"Just another assignment from another evil bastard," the Intelligence Chief grumbled, turning his screen so the others could see. "Nochichi's having me work this up from his ship's sensors. Guess he has a particular interest in this fighter here…"

"The image's all screwed up," Shiro commented.

"In case you haven't noticed, his fighter isn't exactly standard," Matsuyama said dryly. "I'm trying to get a good picture of the pilot… this is the best I've got so far."

A blurry human form appeared on his screen. "A kid!" Kenichi yelped. "When did they start sticking ten-year-olds in fighters?"

"Doesn't even have a flight-suit! And pigtails?"

"They don't look right, do they?" Matsuyama observed, rubbing his chin. "Wonder if they're detachable…?" The others stared at him. "Never mind. It's just… something about her hair _bugs_ me. The color, maybe, or… hm…" he shook his head. In fact, that particular shade of orange-red bothered him immensely. But where had he seen it before? "I'll let Nochichi deal with it."

"You think she's the Jedi?" Shiro asked.

"The what?"

"She looks like the kid that was with those smugglers… you know, that mess on Tatooine? That bounty-hunter we questioned, he said he heard one of them introduced as a Jedi. I just remembered 'cause it was such a weird thing to hear."

"There… uh, there _aren't _any Jedi anymore, Shiro. Even if there were people who had mystical powers, the Jedi Order's dead."

"A Sith, then, fine. All's I'm saying is no normal kid can fly a starfighter."

"And maybe that's why Nochichi's so interested in her. Maybe he wants an apprentice!" Kenichi suggested. "Another one of them! That thought of that just gives you chills, doesn't it?"

"But he's on our side, so it'd be a good thing, right?" Shiro asked uneasily. "Right, boss?"

Matsuyama's gaze had drifted to the viewport again. "Sure…" he said distractedly, "Just what we need." Then, with a muttered, "Goddammit!" he walked swiftly over and slammed the viewport's cover down.

"You okay, boss?"

"Peachy. It's just a headache. Shiro, you look into that with the Tatooine incident, you might be on to something. And does anyone know where Chihiro is? I haven't seen her in a while. Back to work, guys!"

* * *

"So you're Chiyo Mihama." Professor Kurosawa folded her hands on her desk, covering the disk that had caused them so much trouble. "I always wanted to meet you, but I never imagined it would be like this."

"H-hello," Chiyo replied timidly. The woman before her seemed like kindness, gentleness and wisdom incarnate, but something about her precluded becoming too familiar. "I- thank you. For the books, and, and the chance to come here."

"And I certainly didn't peg you as one for green hair."

"Oh, this…" Chiyo touched one of her pigtails. "For- it's for Customs. My eye-color's fake, too." She wore a black blouse and baggy pants of the current Coruscant fashion, though it would've been impossible to mistake her for a native the way she'd been running around and gaping at the sights.

The Professor smiled. "It makes you look like the Invincible One."

"I'm sorry?"

She waved a hand in the air. "Ah, never mind. Just an old story I heard. I'm glad you could make it, Princess."

Kaori nodded silently. Lately, she seemed to be trying to live up to Sakaki's example in more ways than one; eschewing the elegant costume demanded by her station, she dressed simply at all times. Currently, semi-permanent makeup subtly changed the shape of her eyes and mouth, making her an unsettling sight for her friends but no problem at all for the harried Customs agents.

"I would imagine you want to know why I had to see you in person." Kurosawa stood and walked to her window overlooking the green courtyard at the center of the faculty complex. "I'm afraid you won't like it."

"I'll do whatever you say," Kaori assured quickly.

"Oh, I don't doubt it. But this… this, I knew you wouldn't listen to from anybody less than me in person. Especially considering what you've been through."

This made the Rebel Princess a little edgy. The Professor herself, hesitant to give an order? "What is it?"

"I want you… to sit the war out."

"_What?_"

"I knew it," Kurosawa sighed and turned towards them, leaning back on the window. "But listen to me. You're trained as a diplomat and an official… those skills will be far more useful after the war, when we're trying to found our Republic. You're in the running to be Minister of State, in fact. But you can't very well do that if you get blasted in some Force-forsaken warzone, can you?"

"But… but I…" So much for Sakaki's example.

"I know you want to avenge your world… and Ms. Sakaki too, but what you want doesn't matter a whole lot to the galaxy." Kurosawa sat back down. "I'm sorry, Kaorin, but I order you to find some place to lay low for the time being. Keep quiet, don't stir up any trouble for the Imperials, just… wait."

"But the war could take… I mean, where should I go?"

"I don't know. Anywhere remotely associated with the Rebellion would be bad. Those smugglers you hired probably know many places safe from authority. We'll rehire them to look after you."

"Look after…?"

"Say, Chiyo-chan?" Kurosawa turned in her chair and addressed the girl so suddenly that both of her guests jumped. Kaori swallowed whatever she was about to say; the Professor had probably arranged her sudden shift for just that purpose. "You've been training to become a Jedi, I hear."

"Er… yes. It, uh, I haven't been able to…"

"I understand."

"But I had this dream of Sa—" Chiyo glanced at the Princess, "I had a dream that told me that there was somebody on Dagobah who could teach me."

"Dagobah, hmm?" Kurosawa took her completely seriously, which was more unnerving than any derisive comment she could have made. "You'd better look into that. You can keep the fighter you used earlier; I'll special-order you a flight suit. Have you had any other dreams?"

"Well, one, but it was pretty strange."

"Let's hear it."

"I was talking the Princess, and all a sudden, I noticed that there was an eye inside of her, like in her arm. There was a collar around it and a leash, and when I looked up, the leash was dragging a Star Destroyer behind her like a great big kite."

Kurosawa blinked. "Why… didn't you say anything earlier?"

"I didn't think anything of it at the time. The next thing I knew, Tomo and Yomi started kissing, and I know _that_ would never happen, then this girl in a cape started throwing these wooly snakes at me and yelling 'Sea Cucumbers!' then this fish guy yelled 'It's a trap!' and we all blew up."

"Princess…" the Professor steepled her fingers. "Have you had a basic medical scan since you were rescued?"

"No."

Kurosawa sagged, her head sinking to her elbows on the desk. "What kind of a Mickey Mouse operation am I running, here?" she groaned. "What did Green _do _when he got you back, sit around and practice yawning?"

"What…?"

The Professor stood suddenly, leveling what looked like a blaster at Kaori. She jolted as Kurosawa pulled the trigger—but all that came from the device was a piercing click. "That's better."

"What did you just do?" Chiyo asked.

Kurosawa smiled a little. "I just ruined somebody's day."

* * *

"_What?_" Matsuyama stood from his desk and stared at his subordinates, eyes wide and murderous. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN, YOU _JUST_ LOST THE SIGNAL?"

"Um, sir…" Shiro ventured.

"SIT DOWN!" Both men leapt to their stations; ever since his meeting with Madame Director, Matsuyama was not a man to cross. "You're not leaving until you get that signal _back_, is that clear?"

"Yes, sir!" they chorused.

The Intelligence Chief went back to his work, grumbling under his breath.

"Whelp," Kenichi said softly, "Our day is ruined."

* * *

"…and so," Kaori said in resignation as they started across the monstrous campus again, "We're going to hire you two to protect me until this blows over."

"Forget it," Yomi said sharply before her partner could respond. "We're not getting involved in your R…" bad thing to say out loud. "In your business."

"But Yomi…" Tomo protested.

"I said, forget it!"

"That's too bad," Kaori said, "Because my superior's offering 250 thousand credits for the job."

"Did you just say…?"

"You're right it's too bad," Tomo sighed. "Yomi said forget it, and when she says forget it you might as well…"

"We'll do it!"

"Uh?" Tomo stared at her partner. "But you just said… jeez, Yomi, you're way too concerned with money."

"Oh, shut up. I'm just looking out for us."

"I'm serious," the Honorable Captain turned to Kagura, "Seriously, one time I asked her what she wanted most for Christmas and you know what she said? A million credits! 'Be more realistic,' I said, and she was all like, 'So what'd be realistic, a thousand?'"

"What a greedy wench!" Kagura agreed, "How can you stand that?"

Yomi took a half-hearted swipe at her partner, but the smaller woman ducked easily. "So, we're supposed to, what, just hide somewhere?"

"That's about the size of it," Kaori replied with a hint of bitterness.

"I can't think of any good place off-hand, but—what are you two doing?"

They were just leaving the Academy grounds, along a pathway lined with statues of the Tanizaki line. It went all the way from Emperor Hiroshi the Wise to Emperor Daichi the Unpopular, Emperor Arata the Freshness to Empress Yukari the…

Actually, a group of elderly scholars were gathered at its base that very moment, harrying a lone mason as he labored over the inscription. It seemed they hadn't come up with an appropriate adjective yet.

"Well, she's _something_ all right… the Beautiful?"

"The Vibrant!"

"The Bold!"

"The Plumb Loco!"

"For the last time, Hugo, we're not using that one!"

The mason just sat and patiently waited; he was being paid by the hour, after all. Tomo and Kagura had taken up positions at the back of their group. "How about The Awesome?" Kagura suggested.

"Yeah," Tomo said, "Or… uh… so… The So Awesome?"

"What are you talking about?" Kagura laughed and swatted her lightly.

"Get over here!" Yomi barked. They left just as the mason got bored and decided to take matters into his own hands. "It's eerie how well those idiots are getting along all of a sudden."

"A little," Kaori agreed.

Chiyo walked silently in their wake, the packaged flight-suit under her arm. It was amazing how fast things arrived here! In fact, everything about this planet amazed her… but now she took her cue from the more jaded members of their party and tried to restrain herself.

Still, as they mounted a moving walkway at the start of their long journey back to the spaceport, Chiyo couldn't help but lean over the rail, drinking in the two-thousand foot drop with a mixture of terror and glee. You never saw sights like _this _on Tatooine…

"I know _just _where we can go!" Tomo declared. "Bespin! I have a friend there who owes me!"

"She doesn't owe you," Yomi was the very picture of exasperation, "_You _owe _her_. Something to the tune of twelve-thousand? And our ship?"

"Ah, she'll forgive me. She has a heart as wide as the ocean! Or… at least as wide as, uh, the Gray Sea back home…"

"On Corellia? I thought the Gray Sea was pretty narrow…" Chiyo called, not taking her eyes from over the side.

"Yeah," Tomo agreed, "But it's full of Krakanas and stuff."

A heart full of Krakanas? "What kind of friend _is _this?" Kaori asked, vaguely horrified.

"Oh, the very best kind…" Tomo replied, creeping up behind the enthralled Chiyo. "She won't mind—YOU'RE SO TALL, CHIYO-CHAN! _SO TALL!_"

"AAAAHHHHH!" the girl flailed and wiggled frantically as the Honorable Captain hoisted her into the air by her shins. But before anybody could move, _something_ happened; Tomo lurched back from her as if struck and Chiyo's feet smacked into the smooth rail.

"Wha- no!" Kagura took one running step towards the girl as she started slide forward—then _hopped_ back, landing lightly in the middle of the walkway. The whole party stood stock-still for a few seconds as Chiyo dusted herself off.

"There, uh…" Yomi looked back and forth between her and the rail. "You realize there's no physical way you could've done that, right?"

"What hit me?" Tomo asked in bewilderment, sitting up and rubbing her head.

"I might be getting the hang of this…" Chiyo said, more to herself than anyone else. "Uh, are you okay, Ms. Tomo?"

"Come on. Let's get out of here before anybody gets killed," Kaori sighed.


	19. City in the Clouds

(A/N: Though I usually abhor writing Japanese words into translated conversations that are supposed to be taking place entirely in Japanese, some Osakan slang seems to have crept through—oh, was that a spoiler?)

* * *

**19: City in the Clouds**

Professor Kurosawa walked steadily, head high and eyes focused, her every movement certain and clear. She just hoped that nobody would try to start a conversation with her or notice the slight redness of her nose. A pounding headache was already starting to take shape; if luck held, she'd make it to her rooms before it blossomed.

Pausing to take a rest at the entrance to the Academy grounds, she happened to glance over at Yukari's statue. The inscription read:

EMPRESS YUKARI THE PRETTY SPIFFY  
456 IE - ?

Well, there were worse things to be remembered for, though Kurosawa was pretty sure the inscription would touch off a round of firings. The Empress took herself a little too seriously sometimes.

The Professor sat heavily on a bench and massaged her temples. "Damn Empress of the Known Universe and she makes _me _buy the drinks." There _had _to be a better way to gather intelligence than this! Still, the method had a certain poetry to it…

_Where would the Rebellion be,_ she silently asked the great statue, _If you didn't like to bitch about your work so much?

* * *

_

The _Silver Rose_, formerly known as _Red Spirit_, tore through hyperspace with engines far more powerful than it had ever enjoyed before. Embarrassing pink paint and layers of corrosion had been scoured away, lending to the hull a new luster that led to its rechristening.

"This isn't my ship," Yomi sighed, drumming her fingers on the instrument panel. The stupid thing practically ran itself; on the old _Spirit_, there would have been at least four minor emergencies by now. Not that she was complaining, but she was getting a little bored.

"You all right, Kagura?" she heard Tomo ask behind her.

"Huh? Oh, fine." The soldier leaned back and rested her head in her hands. "Just thinking…"

"What about?" Tomo straddled one of the new chairs and leaned on its back facing her.

Kagura usually brushed off such questions. She couldn't say why she decided to answer this time. "It was kinda hard hanging around the Academy; it made me think back to my graduation from Delnor, y'know? I joined already knowing that I was going to disappear after graduating and join the Rebellion…"

Yomi winced in anticipation, waiting for her partner to pop up with a dumb comment. But when she turned around, Tomo was just watching the soldier with as much gravity as the Valerian had ever seen on her young face.

"So I was goin' around, sayin' goodbye to everyone, and every time I would, this little voice in my head would add, _I hope I won't have to kill you._ 'See ya, Dokgo, I'll miss kicking your ass _I hope I won't have to kill you_,' 'Bye Garus, thanks for showing me how to hold that DL-47 _I hope I won't have to kill you_.'" She shook her head. "I mean, the Empire's the enemy, but after learning alongside them for so long, it was hard to convince myself that _they _were… heh, nobody could figure out why I was getting so teary-eyed."

"Mm…" was Tomo's only reply. No joke? No insensitive comment? Yomi wanted to run back, grab the sides of her head and shriek, "WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH MY PARTNER?"

Not out of any particular distress, mind. She was just a bit surprised.

But at that moment, Kaori entered with a book under her arm and sat on the couch. Tomo's expression brightened suddenly and she leapt to the Princess's side. "C'mon, pleeease?" she wheedled.

"No!" Kaori shook her off, "For the last time, no!"

"Just a hint! A little, tiny hint, c'mon!"

By then Yomi had reached her side and given her a good thump on the head. "Leave her be! Why do _you_ have to know who this Professor is anyway, you idiot?"

"'Cause Her Worship said it was a _secret_!" Tomo replied earnestly. "Doesn't that make _you_ want to know?"

Yomi rubbed her forehead. "Honestly…" Though thoroughly aggravated, she felt oddly more comfortable. "Shut up, you!" she snapped at a laughing Kagura.

* * *

"…and that's the job. In summary, 15 million credits for the successful capture and return of Princess Kaori Aida," Matsuyama said, holding in both his fear and disgust, "Your guides will give you a disk with the particulars and all of the intel we have on her whereabouts. Remember, though, the reward's only good if she's _alive_. No disintegrations."

A general "aww…" rose from the rank of Bounty Hunters arrayed before him. They stood in a line along the bridge's promenade, drawing more than a few strange and fearful looks from the crew below. The Intelligence Chief faced them from the wide floorspace before the doors to the concourse. It was not lost on him that if any of the Hunters decided to blast their way out, he'd be the first to go.

What a miserable crowd of degenerates it was! The emotionless Dengar, the strange alien Bossk, the malevolent J.J. "Blackheart" Binks, lethal martial artist Dokgo Hyun, the hulking rogue assassin droid known only as "The Sombra," and a few less famous… but one of their number was the most terrible by far.

He stood insolently at ease, arms crossed over his chest. A dark brown jacket, tattered and burned at the ends by blasterfire concealed his partial suit of stormtrooper armor—telltale scorch marks at the edges of some of its plates left little question as to how he came by them. Perched on his sharp nose was a pair of glasses for which he was famous and on his lips was a cold smirk that showed why he was feared. It was the one, the only, the revered and reviled… _Ohyama-sama!_

Hidden in his shadow was a cringing Greedo. How _he _got an invitation was anybody's guess.

"Are they the ones?" Grand Moff Kimura asked, suddenly standing behind him.

Matsuyama jumped. He still hadn't gotten used to his superior's habit of popping up like a bad penny. "Yeah, they, uh, they're the ones we hired to recapture Princess Kaori… would you like to say something to them before I turn them loose?"

"Yes, actually…" Grand Moff Kimura walked forward and cleared his throat demurely. "Er-hem."

There was an expectant pause.

"**_FIRST PLACE!_**" Kimura bellowed, making just about everybody in the bridge, even Darth Nochichi brooding alone on the far side, all but leap out of their skins. "And another four million credits from my own fortune to the one who brings my Kaorin back!"

_Why is this so special to him?_ Matsuyama wondered. _Why are we even trying to recapture her, anyway? Surely she's palmed off the Plans by now. The only thing I can think of is..._

No, not even Kimura was that sick! He was _married_, and twenty years older than her besides! Perhaps it was one of Nochichi's projects, trying to get at that mysterious pigtailed girl…? _Damn! I'm the bloody Intelligence Chief and I have no clue what's going on!_ Odds were, now that Kaori wasn't useful to them anymore, it was simply a matter of pride.

"Well," his mouth said without input from his busily working mind, "That's all. Happy hunting, gentlemen." As they filtered out in different directions, each with a guide and a cluster of stormtroopers, Greedo turned to Ohyama and fearfully said, "You know, I hear she's traveling with a Sith!"

Ohyama pushed his glasses up on his nose. "Sith aren't invincible."

Before leaving, the Sombra stomped over to Darth Nochichi and addressed him in a buzzing voice. "A pleasure working with you again, Lord Nochichi." The Sith Lord's only reply was to glow briefly purple, the gesture once again mysteriously showing through his armor. Giving a jerky nod, the mighty robot made its exit.

"Since when did we ever need bounty hunters to do our work?" Matsuyama asked sourly as the last of them left.

"We all saw how well _you _managed," Kimura replied absently.

The Intelligence Chief ground his teeth, but he had his consolation planned. Once dismissed, he returned to the Intelligence office and made his first official move as Defector. He had a few contacts in the Bounty Hunting world of his own, you see, and with a brief, coded message on a prearranged channel, one of them came into play.

Not far away, hidden from the Imperials' prying sensors, a vessel received it.

It was an older ship; like its owner, it had been rudely pulled out of retirement very recently. In its shadowed interior, cold, dark blue eyes roved over the list of Bounty Hunters and frequencies for the tracking devices Matsuyama had ordered planted on their vessels.

At the bottom, there was a simple message. _You know the rest._

The man smiled mirthlessly as a large calico cat hopped up on his shoulder. "Let's go, Marco," he said, roughly stroking the feline, "We have work to do."

The _Dark Charger_ leapt into hyperspace.

* * *

It was hard not to feel one's breath catch upon first seeing the floating city of Osaka. It was a titanic, crystalline flower bulb hanging impossibly amid butterscotch and lavender clouds, the setting sun throwing a strident crimson light down one side. There was not a sharp edge on the whole fantastic construct, even among the buildings that covered its crown.

The _Silver Rose_ sliced through Bespin's thick atmosphere, warded by a pair of "cloud cars" as it made its final approach. "See how easy it was to get clearance?" Tomo crowed, "I knew she'd be happy to see me!"

"Maybe she just wants her ship back," Yomi suggested.

"Well, let's find out!" The Honorable Captain's enthusiasm was undiminished.

Waiting for them as they disembarked was this mysterious "she": Ayumu Kasuga, the Baroness Administrator of Osaka. This young woman gave off two very separate impressions at once.

On the one hand, she showed the weight of her position. Her clothes, consisting of tan trousers, a light blue dress-shirt, yellow half-cape and even a (surely fake) ceremonial saber, lent her an aspect one could only describe as "dashing." On the other hand, her wispy build and enormous, soulful eyes gave her a more delicate, ethereal aspect that made it seem as though a strong breeze would send her drifting away over the parapets.

Ayumu stood with a duo of guards, watching their approach with an unreadable expression. Tomo immediately rushed out ahead and threw her arms open. "Ayumu! Hey, how's it goin' gir-?"

Even Yomi winced at the ringing slap that followed. Her partner skidded to a shocked halt in front of the Baroness, who had raised her hand again. "_N-na ahona!_" she cried, "You bothered t'come back here, you back-stabbin' adder?"

Tomo cocked her head to one side, disbelieving. "Adder?" she asked slowly.

"Adder," the other replied, crossing her arms.

"Ouch! That's harsh…"

"Should we get back on the ship?" Kagura asked softly. Yomi nodded and started to step back.

"Well, y'earned it…" Ayumu's voice stayed cold, though anybody watching her could tell she was trying her hardest to keep a straight face. "You cold-hearted, lyin', swindlin' pile o' dog poop! I oughta…" Finally, she couldn't hold it anymore and broke into a wide grin. "C'mere, you!"

The old friends hugged mightily, then performed what seemed to be some kind of secret handshake, though both were pretty out of practice. "I told you it'd be fine!" Tomo called back to her companions.

"Who are your friends?" Ayumu asked, as if noticing them for the first time.

"Oh, this is Yomi, you've met her, and this here's Kagura. She's just a meat-headed soldier, though, so be sure to use small words when you're talking to her."

"Hey!"

"_Maido_," Ayumu greeted casually, waving. She looked past them. "An' who's… oh! Y-you're…"

Kagura tensed. Their host had recognized Princess Kaori- would there be trouble? Before anybody else had fully registered Ayumu's reaction, the soldier had already sized up both guards and taken hold of her blaster.

The Baroness dropped to one knee before Kaori and bowed her head. "Princess Kaori! I—I heard… p-please accept…" she sputtered out and took an annoyed moment to collect herself. "My, my condolences. And… you can stay as long as you like, Princess."

Kaori, for her part, seemed a little embarrassed. It had been a very long time since she'd been treated as a Princess rather than an executive. "Stand. Thank you for your kind offer, Lady Kasuga. You understand that I'm not exactly safe to harbor? The Empire…"

Ayumu had stood, but her eyes were still on the ground, long hair forming a curtain to partially hide her face. She chuckled. "I _am _the Empire here. There won't be any trouble. Come, I'll show you to some rooms; we just built them, so…"

There was an awkward pause. "Er… Baroness?" One of the guards asked.

"Shh… sh…" she waved her hand in the air and whispered, "Listen."

They all fell silent. Sure enough, there was a faint rushing sound, a light, faintly flowery wind and the indefinable feeling of something _huge_ hanging over their heads. After a long moment, Ayumu pointed slowly, wide eyes reflecting the setting sun's light eerily.

Kagura turned, but for the life of her, couldn't see anything out of the ordinary where the Baroness had pointed. "What is it?" Tomo asked loudly, shattering the spell for a moment. "Is this like those magic eye things?"

But then a massive shape broke through the clouds and slid overhead, silent except for a distant fluting sound that might have been their imagination. A monumental turquoise body, some bizarre creature, rolled through the air above them before vanishing into the butterscotch mist once more. For just a moment, Kagura saw what she thought might have been an eye. Its gaze was so alien, so primordial that it made her skin crawl. She was convinced that whatever mind existed behind that eye was beyond human comprehension.

Ayumu giggled. "Did ya see that? His eyes seemed t'say, 'don't you know it's not polite to point?'" Well… there went that.

Tomo stared after the leviathan, eyes and mouth gaping. "Did—I can't—that was, I mean, so… so… awe--!"

"Don't say it," Kagura interjected. "We know."

"C'mon," Ayumu said, "Let's—." It was then that she finally noticed the radical makeover the _Silver Rose_ had undergone. "Oh my God! What did you _do _to my ship?"

* * *

An hour or so later, Ayumu came by to see how they liked their rooms. Kagura was just getting around to wondering what the Baroness was _on_ and whether she could find any for herself; save for her display right after their arrival, Ayumu seemed to be unfailingly mellow and just a tiny bit… disconnected?

Standing at her side was the assistant administrator, Lobot. He was entirely _too_ connected; a cyborg, his gaze was as absent as Ayumu's but for an entirely different reason. Even though he towered over her by a good ten centimeters, he still faded into the background.

"I hope y'like it," she said modestly.

"Like it? Holy cow!" Kagura replied, "It's so _bourgeois!_ I've _never_ had a room like this!"

"That's a good thing, I think," Kaori reassured at Ayumu's concerned glance. "She's just not used to such luxury. So, Tomo and Yomi are across the hall there?"

"_Captain_ Tomo and First Mate Yomi, thank you very much!" Tomo corrected dramatically, striking a pose in her doorway to show off the ridiculous outfit she had assembled. Basically, she'd raided the room's closet, gathered a mess of its shiniest items and tried to see how much of it she could pile onto her slender form. "How do I look?"

"Like a damn lunatic," Yomi said irritably, pushing past her.

"I wondered if y'all were up for a tour," Ayumu suggested, "But you look pretty beat."

"It was a long flight," Yomi agreed.

"You could've gotten some sleep if you'd let me man the cockpit some of the time!" Tomo challenged. "It's your own fault you're so bushed, stupid!"

"You think I'd be stupid enough to trust _you_ with the whole ship?"

"Sure! You're pretty stupid anyway! Stupid! Stupid!"

"I oughta…" Yomi growled, clutching her hands in the smaller woman's direction. Tomo hopped forward and put her face in the Valerian's hands, merrily daring her to do her worst. "Stupid! Stuuu-pid!"

The others stared at this display dumbfounded for a few seconds until Kagura finally said, "I know how to clear this up…" and, with a move doubtless learned while on some wrestling team, knocked both of them sprawling.

"I've trusted my life to _these_ maniacs?" Kaori asked, horrified.

"You couldn't ask for a better lot," Ayumu happily confirmed, then sobered. "With your leave, I should be going." She seemed to speak much more formally to Kaori. The Princess understood, but regretted the wall it put between them.

"See you tomorrow, then. And thank you."

Yomi went back into her room huffily. "Oh, come on, be a sport!" Kagura called after her. This surprised Kaori; the soldier wasn't usually so… playful? "You probably shouldn't go back in there for a while."

"Wanna go get hammered?" Tomo asked hopefully.

"I don't think hammered… but a drink would be nice. Wanna come, Princess?"

_This_ was even odder! It wasn't long ago that Kagura stumbled and stuttered and could barely say five words to her. And now here she was, inviting her along for a drink, just like when they were young. "No, thanks."

And so, Kaori found herself standing alone with Lobot. "Don't you have to be somewhere too?" she asked.

"I can do my job from anywhere," the cyborg replied. "It's like breathing."

"I see…" Kaori leaned against the doorway and looked the way Ayumu had gone. "You know, she really doesn't seem like the administrator-type."

"Well, I do most of the administrating, to be honest."

"So she's like a figurehead?"

"Of course not!" Lobot paused to consider. "We have a left-brain, right-brain kind of working relationship. It might not seem like it sometimes, but she's as sharp as a tack. It's just in a different way than most people. And the citizens love her, too. When she says we're doing our best to help them, they believe it."

"Hm. She said that she was the Empire here… so this is Imperial territory?"

"Of a sort. She's a minor noble of some kind; that makes us count as being under their thumb. No… she's far more than a figurehead. Without her, what would I be administering for? Leaders should have a dream of the future, right?"

"Sure."

Lobot nodded, looking almost sad. "I miss having dreams."

* * *

It was much later when Ayumu finally returned to her rooms, tired but gratified at the day's work, and still buoyed by seeing Tomo again. It brought her back to her Livingston Space Academy days again, that august institution where they'd met and happily flunked out together. When she'd said that Tomo's return made her feel like a space-cadet again, Lobot had commented that he wasn't surprised. Now, what did he mean by that?

Ayumu was in such a good mood, in fact, that when she entered humming a merry tune, she totally missed the ominous shadow hovering in the back of her suite. The Baroness took up a glass from the counter and filled it with a nice burgundy drink that was illegal on most worlds, planning to enjoy it at great length and hopefully survive the next morning.

It was then that the ominous shadow decided to be less discrete.

"**Ahem.**"

Her glass shattered on the floor.


	20. Training Montage

**20: Training Montage**

"Baroness?" Lobot rapped on the chamber door. "Ms. Kasuga, you were supposed to meet with…" The surveillance on her room had been disabled the night before; it hadn't worried him at the time, but it was 4 pm and she hadn't stirred since. "Baroness, I'm coming in."

No response. With a thought, he bypassed the lock and strode in. "Ms. Kasu—oh." The lights were dimmed, soft piano music was playing and, most telling, the blinds were drawn. Ayumu was draped on an overstuffed chair, eyes half-lidded. An unsettling sight; it was easy to forget how small she was when she was the Baroness. Next to her dangling hand rested an empty bottle.

Ah, yes. She'd called _that_ her "burgundy consolation."

"Ms. Kasuga! What--?"

"No' so loud…" she whined softly, raising one hand slowly to her temples.

"Of course," Lobot reasoned, taking up the bottle and recalling with a sinking feeling how full it'd been when he'd last seen it. "Only one thing could motivate you obliterate yourself like this…"

"I dun'wanna talk 'bout it."

"I'll… I'll inform the ministers that you aren't well." He started to leave, but she called him back weakly. "Lobot?" He stopped without turning. "We should… be expectin' more guests soon." Her tone was ominous.

"I'll take care of it," he assured her. "Just rest—and no more, er, consolation, okay?"

* * *

Chiyo hauled herself out of the clinging muck and flopped down on the shore, gasping on Dagobah's thick, sickly-sweet air. As soon as she came to rest, a swarm of biting insects descended on her, but she didn't have the energy to try and fight them off. Behind her, the Seraph's engine ticked and cooled as it sank slowly into a lake of slime.

"Well," she said into the ground. "That was good."

She hadn't expected the clouds to be much of a difficulty in landing, but as soon as she was fully enveloped in them, the fighter's sensors had suddenly died, the yoke had stopped responding and the engine started making an ominous banging sound. Chiyo had grown up refusing to believe in gremlins and things like that, but…

It had been a very, _very _long swim/slog. But as she lay there, not thinking anything in particular, a rummaging sound reached her ears. What the--? Her duffel's strap was wrapped still about her hand, but when she tried to pull it towards her, something resisted.

"Hmm… is this for me?" a voice asked. It was a very strange voice; to hear it, she never could have guessed what kind of a person would have it. Kind of high-pitched but resonant, and probably not a bad singer. "Somebody must have told you I liked cigars."

Chiyo lurched to her knees and turned towards the speaker. It was… what the heck was it? Standing next to her, it would have reached to mid-thigh, at least a fifth of its height accounted for by its large, perfectly round head topped by two triangular ears. Short gray fur covered its body, arms and legs ending in identical paws. Beady dark eyes regarded her with interest.

"Excuse me," she said politely, "But are you Master…?"

"Damn right! Master Bamidele, at your service! Though my cringing, terrified, whining students refer to me as Kamineko-_sama_, I think you should know. That _is _what you're here for, right?"

"Y-yes… er, _you're _the one that taught Master Kenobi?"

"You sound surprised."

"I was expecting someone a little more… intimidating?"

The catlike creature broke into a huge, diabolical grin, showing off an impressive battery of razor-sharp teeth. "And what about me isn't intimidating?" Chiyo decided it would be best not to answer. "Okay, since I don't have anything better to do at the moment, I'll take you on. I might as well tell you right now that you'll hate me before long. Your first two months here will be a living Hell, the next four will just really suck, but by month six you might find it in your heart to forgive me."

"How did you find me so fast?"

"I saw you coming in. Might I add that you totally flunked your first test with flying colors."

Chiyo glanced back at the sinking fighter. "…oh."

"So, what instruction have you had?"

"Mast—er, Ms. Sakaki showed me a little."

"I remember her… Kenobi's ward, right? Cute li'l nipper, last time I saw her. How'd she turn out?"

Kamineko either didn't notice or willfully ignored her sad look. "Magnificently."

"I don't doubt it. Kenobi was a good teacher. Lousy duelist, but a good teacher… unfortunately, this might make things a little harder on you. Unless she totally changed, Sakaki would've been way too soft-hearted to train you properly."

"She sicced a training remote on me on our second day."

"Just one?"

Chiyo swallowed.

"Okay, so we know you've played a little with the lightsaber… oh, here it is." He'd been going through her things throughout the conversation, of course. He tossed the weapon to her. "Second test; we'll see if you do better. Hit me with the lightsaber."

"_What?_"

"Hit… me… with… the lightsaber. Make me tell you one more time and I'll send you packing."

"Okay…" Chiyo ignited the azure blade and held it out towards him. After a few false starts, she drew it back, closed her eyes and said, "Ready?"

"Oh, yeah. Swing away."

_VWOMM!_

Chiyo opened her eyes to find that Kamineko was gone and there was a shallow gash across her cheek. "Oh, come on!" he called from behind her. She turned to see him clinging to the side of a tree with small barbed claws. "You can do better than that! Come on, hit me! I dare you!"

She shrugged and stepped back, swinging at him again. _Fwikkt!_ He blurred past her once more, scoring her arm with his back claws. "What is this, ah? Afraid to hurt me? I'm the Jedi Master here, twerp. Put some backbone into it!"

She jumped after him before he finished the sentence, bringing the blade down, but all she got for her efforts was a slit knuckle and a, "Better, but still pathetic!"

This second test lasted quite a while, and Chiyo collected an impressive array of cuts and scratches. Kamineko's taunting never ceased as he effortlessly stayed three steps ahead of her. Now, Chiyo-chan's a fairly even-tempered young lady, but by the end of it, it's safe to say that she was seeing red.

"I can't believe you even bothered to come here! You can't even catch little old me? Man, that's weak!" He rolled under a diagonal cut and slashed at the inside of her arm along the way. "What'll you do if the Sith come for you, beguile them with those adorable pigtails of yours?"

He jumped from surface to surface around her faster than her eyes could follow; he paused on one and she struck, ignoring the metallic _pa-tunk!_ Kamineko's weight had made on it. An instant before her saber came down on him, she suddenly, painfully _stopped_, held fast in the invisible grip of the Force.

"Hey!" she cried, "No fair!"

"No fair? Look what you almost did."

Chiyo took stock of her surroundings and noticed with chagrin that her blade hovered a quarter-inch over one of the sunken fighter's engines. Kamineko had hopped off of it and now stood on her back as she hung suspended over the muck. "That was a good jump, by the way."

"Oh… uh, thank you."

Then he let her fall. _Splat!_ "Ack!"

"There's a lesson in that." Kamineko gave no indication that he would continue.

Chiyo slowly slogged back to shore, the tiny Jedi Master sitting on her head. "But, uh, I have to figure it out for myself?"

"Nah…" he yawned cavernously and started picking his teeth with a claw, "More like I just don't feel like explaining it right now. What's with the hair? You going for an Invincible One look?"

"What?" Chiyo had forgotten about the green dye. "No… part of a disguise; I'll have to wash it out. But who's this Invincible One?"

"Mm… old story. I'll tell you about it sometime… if I feel like it."

* * *

Fortunately, the Great Spirit Cat was out of practice in creating living hells, so Chiyo's first days in his tutelage were more of a warmed-over purgatory. In terms of food, he just gave her a brief course on what plants were safe to eat and which weren't. He was probably counting on having to treat some food-poisoning, but Chiyo caught on instantly.

Physical training, it seemed, was a big part of the Jedi way. Kamineko delivered his lectures from her backpack as she jogged through the murky landscape, and never let her sit still for more than a few minutes. Whenever the whim struck him, he ordered her down for push-ups and then sat on her back and enjoyed one of the cigars.

"Damn fine cigars," he would say, "Damn fine. Won't get you preferential treatment, mind, but you have good taste."

After some time on this track, they did a sharp reverse and he commanded she meditate. Used to the earlier routine, she had a hard time adjusting to sitting lotus-style and ignoring the insects for half a day. During that phase, it was almost a relief whenever Kamineko decided he wanted a cigar.

They worked with the lightsaber sporadically, but Kamineko made it clear that swordplay was secondary to disciplining herself and listening to the Force.

It took them a week to get to the actual Force manipulation; if Kamineko's reactions were any indication, this was a ridiculously short span of time. It didn't occur to Chiyo to get a big head, though.

"Everybody reaches the Force differently," Kamineko said. "This is something I can't really beat into you."

Chiyo nodded. She was sagging against a tree, gasping for breath after a particularly tortuous "run." Actually, they had started to turn more into "run, jump, climb, swim, and hop-on-one-foot"s of late. When they finally came to a stop, her teacher informed her that they would start throwing flips in the next day. He seemed to enjoy that thought, so it was an especially bad sign.

"Actually, it might be time for a lecture," he commented. Chiyo couldn't hold back a groan. "No, no, no. You've run enough for now. Sit down. Okay, now pay attention, because I'm too lazy to tell you all this twice."

The girl intentionally perked up.

"That's better. Now, you've probably heard about the Dark Side and the Light Side of the Force. I'm going to tell you right now that those are just easy, simplistic handles for something much messier… it's not even a matter of shades of gray. It's not even a rainbow."

Chiyo sat and waited patiently as he paused.

"_What is it then, Kamineko-sama?_" the Jedi Master said in falsetto, then continued as if she had spoken. "The Force is life itself, and anybody who knows anything knows that life isn't simple. It has a different shape and texture for everybody and everybody does different things with it. The Force is not divided so easily, and, what's worse, good and evil do not matter to it."

"But…" Chiyo looked troubled. "Are you saying that there's no moral standard for us?"

"Hey, I said that good and evil don't matter to the Force. I didn't say they didn't matter for _us_. On second thought, I shouldn't say that they don't _matter_, rather… good and evil are both equally parts of the Force. When somebody reaches for the Dark Side, they are not reaching to a different aspect of the Force, they are reaching to the Force with a different part of themselves, see?"

"I think I do."

"I'm telling you this because some students think that when they are in tune with the Force, it will never lead them astray. That's absolute crap. It is not an intelligence and it _surely _isn't benevolent. It can help you learn anything concrete about a situation, but when you're faced with a decision of right and wrong, the Force can't guide you. The only one who decides anything will be _you_."

"I… I see."

"No, you don't. Not yet."

* * *

"Get up."

Chiyo sprang to her feet, instantly fully awake. She didn't want to give her teacher the opportunity to start throwing rocks again, though she suspected that if he really wanted to, he wouldn't feel the need to find an excuse. "It's still the middle of the night, Master."

"It's the perfect time," Kamineko replied from the shadows with a Cheshire grin.

She followed the gray streak as it leapt from tree to tree, still a little clumsy at it but learning quickly. At nighttime, the swamp's smell was much softer, the creatures quieter, more demure and much, much deadlier.

Finally they came to a colossal tree, very obviously long dead. Nothing grew around its twisted gray roots, which formed the opening of a dark cavern. After being surrounded by nothing but life for quite a while now, Chiyo found this monolith of decay not a little disturbing.

"A center of negative energy," Kamineko said softly. "It was the abode of my evil brother, Kuroneko-sama before I killed him. I want you to head in there and see what's shakin'."

"What?"

"Go on in. There's nothing in there that can kill you, you have my word."

Chiyo looked back and forth between cat and tree, and, with forced casualness, started towards the bleak cavern. She hesitated in the entryway and glanced back at the cat, who, instead of egging her on, gestured encouragingly. This made her even more uneasy.

Into the dank, musty-smelling earth she descended. After a few steps, her rational side managed to convince her there was nothing to worry about and she started forth at a light jog. The tunnel opened into a wide chamber, utterly black. She ignited her lightsaber and examined it in the jittering blue light.

"Wonder what he wanted me to-?" Then she heard _another_ lightsaber ignite.

Blocking the entrance was none other than the terrible Darth Nochichi, raising his crimson blade on high! Without a thought, anger surging in her breast, Chiyo plunged towards him, putting her newly acquired lightsaber skills to the test. Blue and red collided again and again, the sounds of their thunderous impacts sounding dead in the still, enclosed air.

Nochichi was formidable, but Chiyo saw her opening. Azure light hummed through the monster's dark armor and something gushed out of the rent. "What? Pink lemona--?"

_BOOM!_

She sprawled end over end, the lightsaber flying from her grasp and going out. After a few seconds of staring into the darkness in blank shock, she regained her feet. The entrance had been to her right, hadn't it? Unfortunately, she'd lost track of directions while fighting.

She tried to focus and find her way by Force. No good; she was too shaken.

Chiyo walked carefully in the direction she thought freedom lay, wincing at how loud her footsteps sounded. After a few yards, though, she tripped on something soft. A body?

She knelt next to it and felt an arm, cold and lifeless. Her hand passed over it, reaching up to the face, a marble cheek, a sharp nose, fine hair… "M-ms.Tomo?" Chiyo lurched back from the body and fell over another, much more substantial. "Ms. Yomi! No!"

Scrambling to her feet, she made a dash for where she desperately hoped freedom to be, only to thump heavily to the ground as another corpse blocked her path. Kagura! She put her hand to the soldier's neck. Heartbeat? Heartbeat? Nothing.

"I killed them! I… what happened? How…?"

And all at once, Kagura was gone and her hand was pressed to the cold dirt. Had it all been an illusion? No… she knew that whatever it was, it wasn't as simple as an illusion. A vision? A possibility? She was in no condition to figure it out, now.

Chiyo emerged into the dawn, immediately hailed by a somewhat-concerned Kamineko. "Hey, how'd it go?" He took a second look at her. "Never mind. I can see. Where's your lightsaber?"

She pointed back into the cavern.

"You're gonna have to go and get that back," he said pitilessly.

* * *

"Okay, sit your little ass down. Story time," Kamineko said, putting a sudden end to Chiyo's lightsaber drill. The quartet of remotes receded into their cases automatically. "Little?" the girl replied, raising an eyebrow at the tiny creature. Like everything else, she had quickly learned what she could get away with.

"What, would you rather I said you had a big ass? Siddown!"

His student complied, laughing softly.

"Okay, you wanted to know, so I'll tell you about the legendary Invincible One, Master Yotsuba. She started training when she was about your age, oh, fifteen-hundred years ago. Had green hair naturally, something you don't see often in humans, I guess."

"Why was she called the Invincible One?"

"Her boundless enthusiasm and optimism. Nothin' could get her down. They say nothing in the universe could have turned her to darkness, which I think is rubbish, personally, but it makes the story more fun. Another reason she was called the Invincible One was that she could bring whole armies to heel…"

The sun tracked across the sky as Kamineko spooled out the tale, the legendary exploits of the Invincible One. It almost made Chiyo want to dye her hair green again. He told her of the harrowing battles Yotsuba had survived in the Sith War, the discoveries she took part in and the allies she made for the Empire. (Back then, it wasn't so bad, he explained. Things had started to go sour when the Tanizakis took power.)

"Master Yotsuba stood before the Jedi Council," Kamineko orated, enjoying the way Chiyo was leaning into him, utterly rapt. "She knew that if she failed, the Jedi would unite their power and obliterate Yavin IV, destroying the evil Exar Kun but also wiping out its indigenous people…" He waited.

"And then?" Chiyo asked eagerly.

"And then…" Kamineko grinned. "And then the wise, lovable and exceptionally handsome Jedi Master made his student run twelve kilometers because he's a cold-hearted bastard."

* * *

_This is frickin' ridiculous,_ Kamineko hissed inwardly. It had only been about three weeks and he was already running out of things to do with Chiyo. For a while, the remotes had figured out that they could get her by spinning around her at different speeds, shooting at complete random and singing "The Song That Never Ends" out of time with each other, but the prodigy was becoming immune to even that.

Now the girl stood before him, eyes closed in complacent concentration. Three rocks hovered before her, spinning in different directions. He had been _so sure_ that she'd have at least a little trouble…

"Okay, now then! Rub your head and pat your stomach." She gave him a strange look, but complied. He watched, but the rocks didn't waver. "Now hop on one foot!" She did so. "Grr…! Now recite the alphabet!"

"A, B, C…"

"_BACKWARDS!_"

Chiyo paused. "Z… Y… X… uh…"

Kamineko leapt past her and just about slashed her hands open. The rocks pattered to the ground and Chiyo clutched at her hands with a pained yelp. "'Uh' isn't a letter!" the cat yowled. "START OVER!"

If she figured _this_ one out, the Jedi Master decided, it would be time to bring in tongue-twisters…

* * *

Chiyo sat at the top of a towering willow-esque tree, absently chewing on a yellowish vegetable that she honestly couldn't remember if Kamineko had recommended or not. Fortunately, she'd figured out how to dilute drugs and poison in her system by the Force, though she hadn't told her teacher about it.

She was learning to harness the Force, disciplining her mind, strengthening (but unfortunately not heightening) her body. Kamineko was a selfish, capricious bastard but he seemed to care about her. Her friends were safe wherever it was they had hidden, Sakaki was evidently doing all right wherever she was…

Life was good. Everything was going swimmingly and… _AND HER FRIENDS WERE IN DANGER!_ "Aaugh!" She stood bolt upright and dropped like a rock, beaten senseless by just about every branch along the way before leaving a deep imprint in Dagobah's soft, loamy ground.

"What's up?" Kamineko asked casually, "Had enough rest?"

"M-my friends!" she cried, rising awkwardly, "They're in danger!"

"So?"

"So? _So?_ I have to do something about it!"

"Do you, now?"

"Well what am I supposed to do?"

"Finish your training, perhaps? Maybe so that you don't rush out there and get totally plowed? You won't do your friends any good dead, after all…"

"I can't do them any good if _they're _dead!"

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to put my paw down on this. And besides, you're fighter's still stuck."

Chiyo glanced up from her packing towards the fighter, then turned towards Kamineko. After giving him a long, somewhat eerie look, she whirled, making a dramatic grasping/flinging gesture with one hand. With an incredible sucking sound, the 40-ton fighter sailed from the muck and tumbled across the swamp as if it were a toy.

"Well, damn," Kamineko said, looking after it and scratching the back of his head.

Chiyo followed it purposefully. Without any dramatic fanfare, the apparition of Sakaki appeared directly in her path, shimmering beneath the dim sun. "I'm not talking to you either," the girl said, striding right through her… then pausing a few meters later as a massive shudder shot through her body. "Eeyaa-aah!"

"Chiyo-chan!" Sakaki called, looking pained. "Please don't go! Nochichi is waiting for you there… you're not ready!"

"I'll have to be," Chiyo replied simply. "I have to do this."

"Damn it, when your old master appears out of thin air and says something to you, you listen!" Kamineko yelled. "Get back here! Hey, I didn't tell you what happened to Yotsuba!" She stopped and turned. "She went and confronted Exar Kun alone, and he killed her, and the Jedi obliterated Yavin IV anyway! See the metaphor?"

The Super Seraph's engines started as Chiyo started towards it again. She leapt up onto the cockpit in one bound and turned around. "I can't just leave them. I don't know what that makes me. I'm sorry, Kamineko-sama, Ms. Sakaki…"

"Well screw you, too!" the tiny Jedi Master yelled, "And don't think you'll get any more help from _me!_" Chiyo hesitated. For a moment, it almost seemed like she would turn back… but then the cockpit closed, the engines roared, and she was gone.

"Well, that sucked," Kamineko said, watching the Seraph vanish up through the clouds.

"She's grown," Sakaki observed.

"Frighteningly. I don't know if I could have stopped her, honestly."

"Is she a match for Nochichi?"

"He'll mulch her, why do you ask?" Kamineko said bitterly. After a second of staring, he suddenly did a double-take. "HEY! Since when were you ever dead?"

"Oh, yeah… about that…"

They stood awkwardly for a few seconds, then Kamineko resumed looking at the sky. The apparition surreptitiously reached towards him, but when her ethereal hand had almost reached his head, he warned, "Don't even think about it. I'll still bite you."

* * *

(A/N: Kamineko's proper name, Bamidele, means "Follow Me Home" in Yoruda. Handy bit of trivia, eh? His official name is "The Biting Cat," but I misread it to be "Spirit Cat" and it works too well for the story to change back. Kuronekosama is a cameo from Trigun, but he's dead now, so he doesn't matter.) 


	21. Evil Psychologist

"_Why were there so few Sith? The simplest reason was that they rarely trained others as Sith. When one of their Order would take an apprentice on, he would not want to raise a potential adversary. He would rather have a minion or even a puppet that could never surpass him. Unable to match their fully trained and self-realized opponents, these Sith minions were easily defeated."_

_-The Sith War Illustrated

* * *

_

**21: Evil Psychologist**

Lavender and butterscotch weren't the only colors of Bespin. As Osaka passed over its mighty globe, the days passed through a bouquet of hues, from blue days where it seemed they hovered in an infinite summer sky to eerie phosphor green nights that had the citizens retreating behind locked doors.

It wasn't surprising that Ayumu had attained such a mellow, zen-like state here… but the dreamlike environment just didn't do it for everybody. "I'm _bored_," Tomo keened, "I thought protecting a Prin—!"

Kagura clapped a hand over her mouth. "Be… more… careful!"

"Sure, sure, fine…" the Honorable Captain said, brushing her hand aside. "I just thought it would be more exciting, this job."

The two of them stood on one of Osaka's many observation decks; were Ayumu more commercially minded they might have had a thriving tourist industry. But as it was, the city supported itself industrially, refining Tibana-gas and carbonite, isolated from the galaxy at large and content to remain so.

Outside, blue clouds scudded across a mass of gray—the inversion was a very strange sight, but it didn't interest Tomo in the least. She paced the confined deck like a caged wildcat, her hair all but standing on end from tension.

Kagura wandered away from her and sat back in one of the lounge chairs, closing her eyes. She had once heard that the wise person knew when to be lazy and when to be crazy… and it was definitely a time to be lazy. Not lax, mind, they still had to be careful. But a little energy-saving was in order.

"Chill out," Kagura suggested. "You don't _want _it to be exciting."

"Oh, don't I?" Tomo replied. "I've been looking forward to a little swashbuckling, a little danger!" She withdrew the lightsaber and swung the unignited weapon around a bit. "I want to be able to have lived through something awesome!"

"Assuming you live through it. And put that stupid thing away, you don't even know how to use it."

"You sound just like Yomi…" the Captain pouted, sticking it in a deep pocket. She hadn't kept the all-shiny outfit, instead opting for simple trousers, a cream shirt and a brown vest. If she didn't know any better, Kagura might have thought that perhaps she was rubbing off a little on the other.

The room's atmosphere calmed by about three degrees; Kagura didn't have to look to tell that Ayumu had entered. "Hey, your highnessness," she greeted flippantly without turning.

"_Ohaa_…" Ayumu returned absently, moving to the viewport and putting a slender hand against it. She looked lost, but Kagura wasn't sure whether to ask her about it. "I was meaning to ask you," she said instead, "What's with that freaky gray mask you had on your wall?"

"It's an ancient superhero mask," the answer came matter-of-factly, "He was a giant that saved his world from terrible monsters."

Kagura chuckled. "A real selfless guy."

"Don't you believe in heroes?" the Baroness asked in mild surprise, turning. "I do."

"That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!" Tomo cut in, "How would a giant even wear that thing?"

"He would put it on and _then_ grow."

"…really?" Tomo asked, eyes wide. Her companion laughed again and turned over, sliding into a shallow sleep.

"Oh, yes. The hero of his age," Ayumu affirmed. She meandered to one of the other lounge chairs and lay back on it, staring into the clouds. Tomo could see the streaks of blue and gray reflected in her eyes. "I came to tell you… an Imperial transport, the _Abhay_, is stoppin' here for a few days." At the word 'Imperial,' Kagura was instantly awake.

"You'll have to take new rooms deeper in the city, in the construction zone where nobody's allowed."

"Damn," the soldier sighed, sitting up. "What were the odds? It's like they're still tracking us or something." After a moment she realized with a pang of annoyance that she'd just gone against her own admonition to Tomo.

For a time, the only sound was the Captain's pacing.

"The clouds are relaxing, aren't they?" Ayumu commented, her voice far away. "You can look at them and imagine yourself anywhere you want… you don't have to be what you are…" She fell silent for a few seconds, eyes drifting shut. "Tomo, please keep to your room while they're here. I don't know what I'd do if… if something happened to you." Her breathing evened out and she was gone, snoring gently, her expression troubled.

The guests left quietly. "You notice something… off about her?" Kagura asked.

"She was always like that," the other replied dismissively. "Half the Profs at Livingston thought she was narcoleptic."

"No, I mean recently. She seems so tired and haggard all of a sudden. You think worrying about us is…?"

"Ah, she'd tell us," Tomo waved a hand in the air, "Don't worry about it!"

"That's not for you to say."

"What do you think about that superhero stuff, though? Do you think…?"

* * *

_"I… I don't want to be a Sith!" Ayumu protested._

_Darth Nochichi loomed behind her chair, somehow seeming to cast a shadow over her even though the light in the room made it impossible. This visitation had turned out to be as stressful as any other; Lobot had taken away her "Burgundy Consolation," but he didn't know about the bottle of "Raspberry Heaven" hidden under her bed…_

_"**I wish I were a bird,**" Nochichi replied derisively._

_"Huh?" she blinked at the odd statement. "What would you do if you were a bird?"_

_"**It doesn't matter one bit. I'm not a bird, I'm an Eddorian. You shouldn't concern yourself with such things either.**" Ayumu yelped as her chair was twisted around by invisible hands and she was brought face-to-face with his huge mask. "**You cannot hide the bleakness of your spirit from me. You **_**will _serve me, as a Sith… or otherwise._**_"_

_"No…!"_

_"**Then stand against me! I can feel the anger rising in you! Surrender to your rage and master it!**" A grip of the Force formed around her throat. "**This is your chance to ascend! Strike back! If you don't want to be broken, now is the time!**"_

_Staring back at him with enormous, frightened eyes, Ayumu slowly shook her head. Nochichi made a filtered sound of disgust and released her, bobbing higher into the air. "**Useless. You should know that I am waiting here for another potential student. Hopefully she has more spirit than you.**"_

_"What'll ya do…" Ayumu massaged her throat and dredged up a little defiance, "If she's _too_ spirited for ya?"_

_"**I was thinking I'd freeze her in carbonite and take her to Eddore.**"_

_"But… but our equipment in't made for preservin' livin' things!"_

_"**Hmm… I will need a test subject, then.**"_

_Ayumu sat bolt upright, chilled. "Wh—but—y'can't…!"_

_"**Don't worry. I will not take one of your citizens… but perhaps I'll use Captain Takino. That seems a good solution.**"_

_"T-Tomo? No!"_

_"**If you want to try to do something about it, feel free. Just remember what happens when I get… annoyed.**" Purple energy crackled around the end of one of his tentacles. "**And perhaps I won't just take my annoyance out on you.**"_

_He seemed to fade away and vanish, though Ayumu was pretty sure that he was throwing up an illusion and zipping away. Suddenly alone, she sagged back in the chair with a quiet sob. _Am I just a conditioned animal? _she wondered, looking at her hands. _I… I can't stand up to him. Why do I fear him so?

_She made up her mind to warn Tomo immediately, but that thought was smothered by a memory of Nochichi's lightning, and the need of hundreds of Osakans depending on her… Ayumu put a hand over her eyes. Sickened, confused and utterly trapped, the Baroness cried.

* * *

_

"No," Matsuyama said, trying his hardest to keep irony out of his voice, "I honestly can't imagine what could be happening."

"I find it very disturbing," Grand Moff Kimura replied with veiled anger, "These men are my only hope of ever regaining Kaorin."

"But you were the one who wanted to…" the Intelligence Chief held off at his superior's dangerous look. "Of… of course, I'll look into it. I'm sure, though, that they're just finding the tracking devices and destroying them. Bounty Hunters don't get far in their professions by being stupid, you know."

"I would have thought so, too, but Greedo's was the first one to go. They've been blinking out one-by-one ever since."

"I'll do my best," Matsuyama assured him. There was only one other item for them to discuss. "If I may bring it up, some of the lower officers are petitioning to move from the Endor construction site. They're having trouble with the locals."

"Exterminate them."

"Uh… the locals or the petitioners?"

Kimura shrugged. "The locals, of course. It's our world, now. They're just primitive humanoids anyway."

Matsuyama's breath caught. Of late, he had only seen the "Bloody Poet" whilst he was mooning over their Rebel Princess, and had quite forgotten how heartless the man could be. "Y-yes, sir. I'll pass that along…" he started to leave, but something brought him to a startled halt. "Sir? What…? Look there!"

The specks on Kimura's console that represented their Bounty Hunters changed course and started towards a single point. All fifteen remaining hunters had evidently had a sudden inspiration, or more likely received a tip, at more-or-less the same time. "What could _that_ mean?"

Kimura smiled slowly. "It means they've found my Kaorin."

* * *

It was a dimly orange night, the air cool and strangely sweet. Osaka had plunged into a colossal bank of tangerine clouds that afternoon and everybody seemed to be in a better mood for it. Kagura jogged alone on one of the upper concourses; the next night the _Abhay_ would arrive and she'd be cooped up for a while.

As she ran, her mind wandered in a way it didn't, usually. Was it this dreamlike landscape or perhaps her bizarre circumstances? Whatever the cause, she found herself imagining life after the Rebellion had won, when the galaxy wouldn't need soldiers anymore. What would she do then?

So wrapped in these dismal thoughts was she that she almost missed the slight figure leaning on a rail near the very peak of the walkway's arc. Kagura slowed to a light trot and stopped next to Ayumu. "Hi, there," she said.

"Oh… hello." The Baroness was as absent as ever. "You're up late."

"I couldn't sleep. So are you, by the way."

"I never can… are the others?"

"I think Yomi's up reading…"

"_Honma?_" She giggled a little. "Yomi's reading. I never would have guessed." Kagura grimaced at the lame pun, but before she could respond, Ayumu leaned out over the rail and pointed. "Look, another leviathan."

The soldier looked gamely but couldn't see anything. "Huh," she said noncommittally.

"It must be nice to soar free like they do… I'd like to ride one, someday." Her voice was distant and child-like. "Wouldn't that be nice?"

Kagura leaned on the rail next to her. She normally would have brushed off such a ridiculous statement, but, perhaps because of the kind of a night she was having, the image came to her own mind as well. "Yeah, it would."

There- was that it? A dim, vast shape wending through the burnt-orange clouds?

"To soar…" she leaned a little further. "You know, standing up here, it feels like you could fly away yourself, huh? Even if you jumped off…" Kagura surreptitiously took hold of her sleeve. "Oh, but I can't." Ayumu rocked back on her heels and straightened.

The soldier hesitated, but since things couldn't get much weirder, she went for broke. "Er… I was wondering if lately… um…" The other woman looked at her a little oddly and she fumbled. "We were… too much trouble…"

The Baroness seemed as if she wanted to say something, but then settled for, "It's not your fault."

"That's… good to hear," Kagura was getting seriously strange vibes. There was nothing for her to do but nod politely and continue on her run. Behind her, Ayumu resumed watching the leviathan graze.

"**Close, close. You very nearly blew our cover.**" Nochichi sounded amused.

She didn't bother looking around for the voice's source any more.

* * *

Yomi dropped her pack in their new room, trying not to gag on the smell of new insulation. It was pretty much the same as their old one, but without any windows and the power was iffy. Ignoring the flickering lights, she set about to settle in.

She'd spent most of their time in Osaka reading. While most Valerians weren't what you'd call deep thinkers, Koyomi enjoyed the works of ancient philosophers and tacky crime novels alike. And though she wasn't one of those people who loved reading for the sake of reading, her tastes were eclectic enough that any library could tide her over for a long time.

If only Tomo would take it up as a hobby, then their long voyages together would be much more tolerable. But then, being honest with herself, Yomi had to admit that she'd become accustomed to a certain noise level, and when Tomo was out carousing with the soldier, it was almost _too _quiet.

But what about Kaori? Huh, what _about _Kaori. What did a lowly smuggler have to say to a Princess apart from humble thanks for the 250,000 she had deposited just twenty minutes before?

"Hey, Yomi, look what I bought on the Promenade!"

"You're _already _spending our reward?" Yomi yelped, sitting up straight as the Honorable Captain entered. "What the hell?"

As they fell into their comfortable pattern of arguing, she glanced across the hall to where Lobot was showing the others to their room. Kagura spoke to him earnestly. "…always so distant, and just falling asleep whenever and saying these really creepy, cryptic things all the time…" The cyborg looked at her blandly. "I mean _more so_ than usual! Aren't you worried?"

"I don't know what to tell you…" Lobot cocked his head to one side. "I'm sorry, the Imperials are arriving. I'd better head up to greet them."

* * *

The _Abhay _was a standard Imperial light cruiser, nothing particularly exciting. Its captain was fairly standard and unexciting as well, though he didn't seem to realize this. His was a particularly nettlesome brand of cocksure arrogance that made even his own officers despise him.

Fortunately, such types usually hit Ayumu's placid surface and slid off without injury to either. She politely listened to his babbling as they walked deeper into the city, looking for shapes in the clouds. Nochichi had actually been fairly quiet that day… was it too much to hope that he had left? Sometimes he would get bored, like the cat he vaguely resembled, and simply fly away without carrying out his heinous threats.

"…what do you think?" the Imperial captain finished.

"Well…" Ayumu racked her memory, but what her visitor had said just four seconds before was irrevocably gone. Somehow, she didn't mourn the loss. "I think…"

"Baroness!" a messenger rushed up to her in a panic. Though he was a good bit taller than her, Ayumu seemed to look down to him. "'Sup?" Saved by the bell!

"There… it's… we have a situation."

His tone of voice tugged her down to ground; her eyes were suddenly clear and focused, her voice less vaprous. "Tell me." The three of them walked together, a little slower than either of the men would have liked, but she was an Imperial Noble, however low, so neither could really complain. Osaka's control room wasn't far away, anyway.

"It's two unidentified vessels," the messenger explained nervously. "They're coming in on different vectors; neither of them have hailed us. Their weapons are charged and they're going full-burn. ETA four minutes on one, seven on the other."

"I assume you've tried hailing them," the captain said imperiously.

"Y-yes, sir. No response. We've sent out our Cloud Cars to the nearer one, but they aren't very well-armed, so…" And then they broke into the babble and hubbub of Osaka Central, which normally had the same breezy atmosphere of the rest of the city and wasn't taking too well to the new stress.

"Sensors confirm," Lobot announced, "That's the _Killer Laa_, a Bounty Hunter's vessel." His fingers flew over one of the many consoles before him and an image appeared of a Naboo fighter, painted black and covered with pictures of flaming skulls, eight balls, eyeballs and the like.

"Blackheart Binks!" one of the technicians cried, "What in the name of the Sith is _he _doing here?" Nobody noticed Ayumu wince at his curse. They did, however, notice when she raised her voice. "Call back the Cloud Cars! They…"

She was cut off by a radio feed as their pilots accosted the intruder. "_Unidentified vessel, this is Osaka Perimeter Enforcement. Power down your weapons or—!_" Static. The _Killer Laa's _blaster cannons spoke again and the second Cloud Car burst apart in an oily gout of flame. "_Yee-ha!_" the cruel bounty-hunter squealed, "_Meesa get phat paid!_"

Would you let two lousy Cloud Cars delay a 15 million credit payday?

"The other vessel is unregistered," Lobot said. "It's reasonable to assume that it is bounty hunter as well. Another vessel is entering the system- it appears to be a privateer of some kind. The… _Nova Eater_. Three more are approaching, but we cannot identify them."

"What is this, a convention?" Ayumu massaged her temples. "Gather the security forces, we've gotta protect the residential areas and…"

"With respect, baroness, now that the _Nova Eater_ is here, we don't have enough men to—"

"Well, what am ah supposed to do?" Ayumu swallowed her accent again as she looked back and forth between an impassive Lobot and a smirking Imperial captain. This was something she'd heard about; whenever the Empire decided to tighten its grip they always sent soldiers in on some pretext…

But the people here were happy! They'd celebrated their de facto independence from the Empire when she'd first been posted here! What would the stormtroopers bring with them but oppression and misery? "Another two vessels have arrived in system. They appear to be fighting one another."

"C-captain Ganner…" Ayumu's lips trembled slightly. She was trapped. "I request that your men aid in the defense of Osaka."

"Of course!" he replied, "We're always up for a good… defense." It was amazing how you could twist the word "defense" to make it sound like "occupation." He withdrew his comlink with a flourish; the Baroness thought she was going to be sick.

"Military operations aren't my specialty," she said, as calmly as she could. "I'd only get in the way here. If anybody needs me, I'll be in my office." Ayumu left the control room to Ganner's admittedly capable hands, trying to get out of sight as quickly as she could. When she finally found an empty corridor, she sagged weakly against the wall. "They're going to… they're going to cover _my_ city and… Why… why is it turning out like this?"

"**Because it's so much more entertaining when you're forced to bring it down on yourself,**" Nochichi informed her from wherever he was.

She flinched at the sound of his voice, and then violently struck the wall. "I _HATE _YOU!"

"**We're making progress, then.**"


	22. The Fall of Osaka

**22: The Fall of Osaka**

"**I don't know what you expected,**" Nochichi said reasonably, "**You _did _betray them, after all.**"

Ayumu, walking alone in a deep corridor of the city, flailed her hands through the air about her head. "Shut up shut up shut up!"

"**Seriously, why did you even bother? She's going to be frozen in carbonite soon enough anyway.**"

She sat down heavily on a step, hands resting on her solar plexus and just a bit out of breath. Tomo hadn't been in the mood to listen, as she had expected. The Honorable Captain had responded to her heartfelt entreaty/apology with the ol' hiccup cure. That was fine; she deserved worse. And perhaps Tomo would've done worse, but Yomi had grabbed her shoulder and said, "She's not worth it. Let's go!"

"Not worth it…" Ayumu recalled with a bitter chuckle. "It's true."

"**You're slipping…**" Nochichi warned laughingly.

Before she could respond, another, much friendlier voice hailed her. "Baroness?"

She bolted to her feet, straightening her cape and regaining a semblance of composure. Only when she was sure of her voice did she responded. "Yes, what is it?" A young guard (not much older than _her_, in fact) stood, frozen in the act of offering his hand to help her up. "Er… are you all right?"

"My city's goin' t'hell in a handbasket, the refugees we were shelterin' are cooked, and ah just got punched in the sola' plexus. 'Part from that, ah'm doin' fine." That damn accent made it too obvious when she was upset. Hopefully the guard didn't notice. "How're you?"

"Oh…" he glanced at his boots, only just realizing how stupid his question had been. "Where are you going? You should probably take shelter, if, if you don't mind my suggesting."

"My offices." This was _her _city after all. "I'd better deal with this."

"I'll protect you!" he said eagerly, hefting his rifle. She started walking and he took up a position next to her, scanning the corridors intensely. After a few yards in silence, though, he spoke again. "Er… at the risk of sounding like a moron, just who are we fighting?"

"The bounty hunters!" she replied, shocked. Was this man even more spaced-out than she? "Who'd ya think?"

"Because it sure looks like some of the Bounty Hunters are cooperating with the stormies… and then there's this militia group of citizens fighting them _and _the bounty hunters, and then there's- well, none of us know what's going on."

"Neither do I," Ayumu shook her head. "Tell you what, just find someplace to hide and don't get shot."

"But… Baroness!"

"If you don't even know who you're fighting, what's the point?"

"Well… I, uh, I know who I'm fighting _for_..."

"You do? I envy you."

"But Baroness! Shouldn't we be protecting the citizens?"

"Just…" she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Do your thing. I can't…"

"**Do you care about this fellow? Perhaps I should have him frozen, too.**" Nochichi commented. "**I can be flexible.**"

"Shut up," Ayumu muttered, "I don't even know his name!" The guard glanced at her, concerned. "Oh… it's not you," she assured him, tapping her temple. "It's…" He looked even more concerned at _that_. "Hey! I'm not crazy!"

"Of, of course," he replied, wide eyed.

"What's your name, anyway?"

"Corporal Benjiro Kitamura."

Ayumu didn't know why she bothered to ask; what use was there connecting any more deeply with this guy? He'd probably be shot before the day was up. Her mind turned with dismal thoughts, flickering from his fate to hers to the stupid militants and the treacherous stormtroopers and her desperately fleeing friends, every image darker and more frightening than the last. If she could salvage just one part of the whole sordid mess… "Corporal- I order you not to die."

"Baroness? Uh- that is, I can try."

"Don't try. There is no try!" She cuffed him. "Do it!"

"Y-yes, ma'am." He had a rather amusing deer-in-headlights look about him, obviously wondering if his superior was quite stable. That didn't bother her, as she was wondering the same thing. They were silent until they arrived at her office. "Thank you, Corporal."

"No problem."

"Now remember not to die."

"Uh- right. Sure thing."

The office doors closed between them.

"**So, what do you think?**" Nochichi hovered above her desk, lost in shadow. The blinds were drawn and the lights out. Ayumu didn't make any move to change either. She merely stared at him, trembling, but in a different way than she had before. "**What are you going to do now, eh? I can give you the casualty figures, if you like.**"

Ayumu's hand closed around her ceremonial saber. She shut her eyes, struggling for a fleeting moment, then—

Its scabbard was devoured by a vividly purple blade of energy, lashing out in an arc towards the Sith Lord as she leapt with unnatural agility, silent, soft eyes blazing, for once every fiber of her being focused, bent on annihilating this hateful monster—

And she stopped. Held fast in the air before that dreadful mask, she stared defiantly, struggling against binds of Force. Darth Nochichi took a moment to savor the anger pulsing through her. "**That's more like it!**" he commended. "**Now we can start your training _properly_.**"

The room filled with shrieking lightning.

* * *

Benjiro ran along an open-air street, contemplating the strange order from the Baroness. It raised a bit of a conundrum; did he owe his loyalty more to her or to the city? Because their interests sure seemed to be conflicted in this case.

He rounded a bend and was suddenly confronted by a rank of stormtroopers and a rather pissed-off Ohyama. "All right," the Bounty Hunter yelled back at them, "Which one of you let that bigass scream?" None of the troopers responded. Out amid the sea of clouds, a leviathan turned in the air. "The stupid things are harmless! It's like screaming over a roach or something!"

Benjiro started to shuffle away, but Ohyama rounded on him. "Hey!"

"Erk!"

"Have you seen this woman?" the bespectacled Bounty Hunter asked sharply, holding up a picture of Kaori.

"No. I- I haven't."

"Hmph. Carry on, then. Come on, lackeys!"

He jogged away, followed by a column of grumbling stormtroopers. As the last one passed out of earshot, Benjiro sighed in frustration. "They could at least make it a little less obvious…"

* * *

"Crap…" Kagura backed away from the corner and turned to the others. "They've blocked this one, too. Is there another way?"

"You're the one that was always running around," Yomi replied. "If you don't know, we sure don't."

The four of them had had a rough time getting this far, but fortunately they'd avoided any shootouts. (You couldn't rightly call it a shootout when Kagura blasted a corridorload of troopers before they realized anything was up.) "How many?" Tomo asked. She had this thoughtful look on her face; of the group, only her partner knew to be frightened by it.

"'Bout ten. Why?"

"Because _I_ just got an idea."

"Oh, God," Yomi moaned. "At least tell us what it is before you—"

Tomo sprinted into the trooper-laden room with a wild yell, waving her blaster in the air with absolute confidence. Assuming she knew what she was doing and there must be more behind her, the Imperials fell back from the blaster-toting banshee. Her companions stared in shock for a moment before piling into the room after--but Tomo and her prey were already long gone.

"Holy shit!" was all Kagura could manage.

"That was… really brave," Kaori added.

"The idiot!" Yomi snarled. "What the hell is she thinking?"

The room emptied into a lower concourse. They could still hear Tomo's yelling down one corridor, while the _Silver Rose_ lay in the other direction. The two Rebels started that way, but then paused when Yomi didn't move.

"Oh, yeah… your life-debt." Kagura looked understanding for a moment, but then her eyes hardened. "We're not waiting for either of you."

Yomi nodded resignedly and started after her partner.

Meanwhile, ahead, the troopers were just beginning to figure out they were running from a lone woman. The whole column of them gradually stopped and turned to face her. Tomo awkwardly skidded to a halt, still howling. She tried making herself look big, faking towards them, the works, but they didn't fall for any of it.

"Well?" she finally asked, short of breath. "What'll it take?"

In response, they raised their rifles as one. Tomo blasted the one closest to her and turned on her heel, screaming again, but now for a much different reason. Unfortunately, she couldn't outrun the crisscrossing stun beams they fired after her and sprawled to the ground, instantly silenced.

"Yeah," one of the troopers said, kneeling next to her. "This is the one."

"Take her down below," the commander ordered. "And tell the techies to get that carbonite cell ready."

Yomi was too far behind to hear this exchange, but she managed to track the group as they moved deep into Osaka, down through the industrial areas that their few tourists never saw. She stole down musty hallways with no windows, the only light coming from dim fluorescent tubes. This was for the comfort of the Ughnauts, ugly little dwarven creatures that made their living running the machinery down here.

She had no idea what they were planning to do with her friend, but she vowed that they wouldn't manage it. In spite of all the grief Tomo had given her, the life-debt still held. And perhaps, perhaps she even cared beyond it.

Her bowcaster's arms snapped into place.

* * *

It was a dreadful risk, but the most direct way to the _Silver Rose_'s berth lay along one of the open-aired walkways that circled Osaka's crown. Kagura paused near its doorway to let the Princess catch her breath. "You ready?" she asked.

Kaori nodded gravely. The soldier couldn't help but notice how Sakaki-esque her expression was; was this emulation a good thing? Was all this silent strength genuine or a façade? Did it matter? Kagura forcefully derailed that train of thought.

They sprinted out along the concourse together, suddenly surrounded by blazing sunlight and a pale blue sky. Visible in the distance, the _Rose _gleamed invitingly on its platform, alone and unguarded.

"I don't trust this," the soldier commented. Kaori might have responded, but she was already gasping for breath. Her dress, unfortunately, was not exactly made for running, and the black fabric soaked in sunlight with a vengeance. _Strong,_ she reminded herself. _Quiet and strong._

Even Kagura was a little hopeful when they came within a hundred paces of the vessel without any resistance. Her hope was almost instantly crushed, however; a dozen stormtroopers disembarked from the _Rose_ and spread out before them, weapons at the ready.

One of the bounty-hunters, an extremely tall man in a flowing, dark gray coat, walked casually down after them and stood at the base of the ramp, one hand in his pocket. Long black hair whipped around his hard, lined face in the wind. Declining to gloat or even introduce himself, he drew two bulky blaster pistols and leveled them on Kagura. She knew instinctively to fear them more than any number of troopers.

But then he started shooting, and the Imperials didn't realize they had been betrayed until most of them were dead. The last few spun and tried futilely to bring their ungainly rifles to bear before merciless green beams cut them down.

The Hunter whirled both blasters on his fingers and holstered them. As the Rebels drew nearer, Kagura still holding her weapon on him, he bowed ironically and stepped aside to let them mount the ramp.

When she passed him, however, Kaori came to a sudden halt, shock stamped across her face. "Wait a second!" she turned to the towering man and met his dark blue eyes. "I know you!"

"You have me at a disadvantage, then," he replied quietly, then walked away.

"But… but you're…" Kaori called after him, looking more distressed than she had since the start of their Osakan ordeal. "Hey!"

"Princess!" Kagura snapped, more sharply than she intended.

Kaori looked after him a moment longer, then finally shook her head. "R-right. Let's go."

* * *

"You're a little late," Tomo said dryly.

It was a vast room, dimly lit as the rest of the industrial areas. Under a vaulted ceiling, row after of row of alcoves set into a wall lined with catwalks waited to be filled with carbonite. The Honorable Captain was restrained in one of them, looking around in bemusement.

"What _is_ this?" Yomi dropped an unconscious stormtrooper to the ground with a clatter of broken helmet pieces. He had been the lone guard. "And where are the others?"

"Oh, they got called away," Tomo responded with perfect equanimity. "Crazy stuff goin' on, I hear." The First Mate reached for her partner, but her fingers struck sparks on a force-field that spread over the whole wall before her. "Wha…? This is a ridiculous way to execute you—why didn't they just blast you?"

"You complaining?"

"No! I just- where are the controls? I'll get you out of there."

"I heard the commander say to lock them."

Yomi stared for a moment. "We'll work this out… but what were you _thinking?_"

"I saw all those troopers, and nobody else stepped forward, and I thought to myself… now's my chance!"

"Your chance to _what_?"

Tomo shrugged.

"Moron!" Yomi cursed again. "What the hell am I supposed to _do_? Godammit!" She drew her bowcaster and fired it into a corner of the force-field, but the quarrel shattered uselessly. "Dammit dammit dammit! Wha-? You're laughing! What's so funny?"

"It's just fun watching you freak out."

"Why are you so cheerful? You're about to have molten carbonite poured over your head, you idiot!"

"Oh, I figure this way, my beauty will be preserved forever." More probably, it was just a desperate defense mechanism, but even as pissed as she was, the Valerian decided not to point this out. "And why are you so upset, eh? Don't you want to get rid of me anyway?"

"Not like this!" Yomi punched the field. "Help me, here! I… I can't think of any way to get you out!"

"You're the smart one, stupid! If I knew a way, I'd be shrieking at you to do it, wouldn't I?" There rose the deep grumbling sound of machinery coming to life deep beneath their feet. Gas started spraying into the alcoves, making Tomo wince and cough.

"Shit! I can't… Tomo!"

"Would you shut up, you dimwit? I'm trying to die with dignity here." A calm, fatalistic Tomo! Would the wonders never cease? "It'll be a fitting end to my illustrious career. And there's a chance I'll survive, too... "

"Tomo, I… I…" Yomi put her hands on the force field as thick gray fluid started oozing into the alcove behind her partner. She sputtered out, tears beading beneath her glasses. "I…"

The Honorable Captain's eyes were wide, clear and thoroughly unnerving in their intensity. "I know."

"I'll come back for you, Tomo! I'll find you!"

"You'd better go… ah! Oh, sh- this stuff's cold!" She shuddered eloquently, then cast an annoyed look at her partner. "Get outta here, stupid, they're coming back!"

"Tomo…!"

* * *

"Lord Nochichi, what a pleasant surprise!" Captain Ganner tried to hide his shock at the Sith Lord's sudden entrance in Osaka's control room. "What can I do for you?"

"**You've done excellent work, here, Captain. I only have one more item of business to attend to, and I will leave Osaka to your care.**"

"Yes, sir. If, if I may ask, what else do you need to do?"

"**I'm just waiting for my daughter to arrive.**"

"Sir, another unidentified vessel is coming in." One of the technicians put a hand over his ear and turned to Ganner. "It's not one of the bounty hunters."

"What kind of ship is it?"

"One of those new rebel fighters… Angels or whatever they're called."

"Dispatch Zeta Flight to intercept," Ganner ordered. "Shoot it down."

"**That would be her now,**" Nochichi said casually.

"Should I recall…?"

"**Oh, we ought to keep up appearances. But you won't be getting those fighters back…**" Darth Nochichi started to drift away. "**I have taken up in the carbonite refinery. You would be wise to clear her a path.**"

* * *

It was a good thing the fighters were occupied. Yomi stood on a walkway that coiled down Osaka's tapered underside, leaning on the rail as she pocketed her comlink. In spite of Kagura's cold warning, the _Silver Rose _was still nearby, and it rose beneath her out of the churning clouds.

If anybody had been watching her, they would have had a hard time reading her expression. What turned within her? She had failed in her duty as a Valerian… and yet it was somehow even worse than that. As her beautiful ship hovered before her and offered its ramp, Koyomi Mizuhara knew that she _would_ find Tomo again and save her.

It didn't even cross her mind that Tomo might not have survived her carbonite freezing; the great and mighty Captain Takino, brought low by an oozing mass of fast-hardening solution? The Captain's ego would absolutely _not _allow that, and it was enough for Yomi.

And besides, the smaller woman still owed her seventy credits. She'd have to collect on that, right? _Sure, _Yomi thought wryly, hopping onto the ramp, _Take any excuse you want, me._


	23. The Black Knight

**23: The Black Knight**

Bespin was red that day. It was a fitting hue. Swimming through a sea of crimson and orange clouds, Osaka struggled to rebuild. Towers of smoke rose now rose amid the once-pristine spires, stormtroopers marched where indolent guards had once strolled while the citizens cowered from their armored tread.

Funerals. An official tally of casualties had yet to be released, but there had already been many services. Small, family-only affairs, these; any significant gathering of people made the troopers edgy, and nobody wanted _that_. Astonishing the carnage that the arrival of only fourteen bounty-hunters (and a squad of privateers) had caused.

Darth Nochichi cared little for the confusion and devastation he left in his wake. Nor did it bother him that Ganner would press an iron thumb into the collective backs of the Osakans that they had never felt before. Rebellion, turmoil and strife? A necessary step in any Imperial occupation.

His dark fighter carried him out through the sanguine atmosphere, plotting its own course and leaving its master to ponder. He considered his student, curled up on a pallet in the back with a breathing mask over her nose and mouth, and his monstrous, alien heart was moved by something that could almost be equated with affection.

Most High Baroness Ayumu Kasuga… how great and mighty a title for such a pathetic, fragile creature. But then, every human he faced had been so, even the Jedi, even warriors born-- even his own daughter. They had made great strides, he and Ayumu, but he knew that she would never be the student he wanted.

Nochichi had hoped for a younger, more pliable apprentice. Within Ayumu, at her center, there was a great well of languor, gentleness and this crooked sense of humor that colored her every experience. Though swathed in the wreckage of dreams and submerged in a sea pain and terror, these aspects still defined her.

Someone inhibited so could never be a Sith Lord. But in his own revolting way, the alien wanted what was best for her, so he resolved that she would be Sith alongside him. She was all he had to fall back on, after all.

"**You would have been the perfect student, Chiyo-chan,**" he mused. "**It's a shame I had to kill you.**"

* * *

At that moment, Chiyo snapped awake with that awful 'someone walked over your grave' feeling, which was quickly subsumed when she realized that she also felt like she'd been keel-hauled by a low-flying Seraph for a couple of kilometers. Where in the world was she?

Perhaps she could have gotten a sense of the place through the Force, but her head hurt far too much to muster the necessary focus. When she tried to spread her awareness, all the young prodigy got for her efforts was a big furry weight on her chest.

"_Aiy!_ Get off, Marco! She's damaged goods."

"Nyaa…" The sound came with a puff of fish-scented air in her face.

The animal was lifted away and there came a distant thump and a disgruntled hiss as he was carelessly tossed aside. A cool, damp cloth moved gently over her temple, chasing the headache away and starting to clean a sheet of dried blood that she hadn't noticed.

Even as she started to drift off again, Chiyo's senses returned gradually. She became aware of the man as a well of stony calm; a great, dark wall to both the eye and mind, whatever emotions that lurked in his depths hidden even from him.

In his way, he was very similar to…

_No way! _was Chiyo's last thought before sliding back into unconsciousness.

* * *

_"Thanks for coming," Yuichi said grudgingly, "This… isn't my environment."_

_It surely wasn't. The Holonet City Music Hall on Coruscant was about as far from his natural environment as one could possibly get, and he planned to retreat to an appropriately inhospitable bar as soon as he was done with his business here. He slouched awkwardly alongside Yasuhiro as they wended through crowds of nobles, officials, officers, aristocrats and performers. The lumbering, rumpled bounty hunter made a startling contrast to the tiny, impeccable Jedi._

_"It's no problem. I've been wanting to see how their new conductor will do anyway."_

_"Where's Ben?" Yuichi asked. "And your foxy wife?"_

_"My wife, you'll recall, is four-months pregnant." Yasuhiro looked at him sideways, unruffled. "As for Ben, he doesn't like big events like this. He says he prefers to listen to music alone. I'm sure that if he goes on like this, he'll be a hermit before too long."_

_"Eh, get him some rocks to stare at…" Yuichi shrugged. He was as derisive of meditation as he was to most of the Jedi tradition, but usually refrained from making jokes about it in the presence of its practitioners. This was just a sign of his nerves, apparently. Odd that a man who could stare unflinchingly into the mouths of twenty blasters found wearing a tie so intimidating._

_"How did you get through Customs this time?"_

_"Bribe."_

_"At the rate they're charging these days? I'm impressed."_

_"Well this'll be worth it to see…" Yuichi looked away, trying to compose himself to look tough again._

_They were attending the command performance by some duke or another. There had been a flurry of them recently; ever since the Emperor started trying to bludgeon some culture into his daughter before she took the throne, throwing concerts become fashionable among the nobles. It was great if one could get some Galactically acclaimed performers for one's concert, of course, but even _better_ if you could find an unknown of exceptional talent and give them their first exposure…_

_The two men found their seats and settled in for a long wait. Yuichi waited patiently through a rousing performance by the Imperial Pops, jiggled his leg and drummed his fingers through a few numbers by a string quintet, slept through a chorale that he might have actually enjoyed, considered climbing the walls as a male trio soared to pitches no man should ever reach, wondered why he didn't bring his blaster as some creepy alien demonstrated its proficiency with an instrument that was as loud as the bagpipes and twice as piercing, and finally… finally…_

_Yuichi sat up, wide-eyed. Taking the stage was a slender child of eleven, tall and elegant for her age, with huge, somber eyes. Her simple gown was shining black, but it didn't match the luster of her hair, flowing down her back in a thick braid. She took her place on the stage, gaze deferentially lowered, but when the orchestra started, she raised her eyes and her voice._

_And what a voice it was! Yuichi Sakaki sat in rapt silence, dumbfounded that this lovely creature could possibly be his daughter.

* * *

_

_There was a dinner after the concert—Yuichi had been planning to skip it, but there was no way he could now. Instead he found himself pushing his way through the crowds again, searching the sea of heads for—_

_"Hey, brat!" he called happily. Nanashi turned in surprise at his voice, then broke into a run towards him, leaving the person who'd been talking at her sputtering in her wake. Yuichi caught her out of the air effortlessly and spun as they hugged, laughing for the first time in what seemed like decades._

_"Father!"_

_"Come on, I told you not to be formal!"_

_"Papa!" Nanashi's smile wasn't her usual reserved little upturn of the lips, but a big, genuine grin that would have looked goofy on anybody else. Yuichi didn't know it, but she only brought it out for him._

_"That's better." Arm-in-arm, they started walking away from the party. That's where Sakakis usually go, after all, especially in groups. "So how ya been, brat? It's been more'n a year!"_

_"Yeah." For an instant, her cheer faltered, but it surged back without resistance. "I'm all right. And your work?"_

_"Just all right?" Yuichi scoffed. "Oh, come on, you're singin' in a command performance for Duke Whatsisface! You were spectacular, kid! And you're just doin' all right?"_

_She nodded. "It's not… what I hoped for."_

_"No?" he looked down at her, concerned. "Then, what the heck are you doing here?" He tried not to swear around her, though it was a reflex everywhere else._

_"I chose wrong," she answered, which didn't really tell him anything. Before he could press, though, she tugged on his arm. "But how are _you_?"_

_"Oh, same ol' same ol'." He shrugged uneasily. "Difficult clients."_

_"Mm." She gazed up at him with those unblinking eyes and Yuichi realized that she understood more than he'd ever told her about his work. "Your voice sounds strained… are you hurt?"_

_"It's not bad!" This time he meant it, even thumping his side to show her so. "Just a little burn."_

_"Father, have they been shooting at you again?" she asked severely._

_"Uh, of course not! It's just an industrial… adhesive…" he looked away. "Allergic… uh. Reaction. Um." After a few seconds of determined silence out of his daughter, he relented. "They might have. Er… they're lousy shots, though."_

_For some reason, that seemed to give her resolve. Looking at the tiles between her delicate feet, Nanashi pursed her lips. "Did you come with Master Mihama?"_

_"Yeah. Don't know where the little bast—guy got off to, though. You're not still scared of him, are you?"_

_"Hn." She didn't answer the question, which was all the answer he needed. "Could you tell him that I've… I've reconsidered?"_

_"You mean the Jedi thing?" Yuichi felt like a concussion grenade had gone off in the room (and he knew what those felt like.) "Nanashi, why?"_

_Nanashi pressed close to him. By this time they'd reached the row of windows that overlooked the Imperial City, standing alongside all of the other wallflowers. "It's because…" she faltered. He could see the city lights reflected in her eyes, and could all too easily imagine it as blasterfire. "Because I want to go with you."_

_"You know you can't, Nanashi." He tried to keep anger out of his voice—it wasn't at her, but at a galaxy that seemed to be conspiring to keep her from him. Only its game had changed—now it was trying to take her away forever. "You haven't done anything wrong. You shouldn't have to hide like I do!" _

_"I _want_ to." She stood away from him and took one of his large, rough hands in both of hers. The child's fingers were very long and tapered; only an innate, unhurried grace (surely inherited from her mother) kept her hands from looking spidery. "I know I can't go with you, not really. But…" she looked over her shoulder at the throng of concert-goers. "There's nothing for me here. Maybe I can be in spirit, sharing your experience of life as a… as a Jedi."_

_Yuichi's grim eyes turned to the cityscape. It seemed that his daughter, too, suffered under the curse of clan Sakaki, dogged by a sense of darkness and unbelonging in wherever she found herself. But _this_… "It's dangerous, Nanashi. Jedi have to dive headlong into things nobody should ever have to deal with."_

_"That sounds familiar," Nanashi agreed. "And who is your next mark?"_

_For the briefest of moments, he wanted to drop-kick her. Sure, he had his profession, but didn't she see that he was hoping for a _better_ life for her? There was once a time when being a Jedi wouldn't necessarily lead to a life full of violence and danger, but those happy days were gone. Why was she so eager to subject herself to Kamineko's patented living hell and then plunge out into a galaxy which would fit that description even better?_

_But he'd have to leave before the Law caught up to him, so if this was her decision, he couldn't really stop her no matter what he said. "Small-time gangster named Xixor," he answered, unaware of the grief in store for him. "Should be a pushover." Afterwards, he signaled by his silence that he had more-or-less given in._

_"Papa, I'm sorry," Nanashi said sadly, putting her arms around his waist._

_"Well…" he grumbled, hugging her back one-handed. "Long as you're happy, I am. I guess." Actually, he felt like he was still bleeding from that concussion grenade earlier._

_She didn't buy it, anyway. "I'm so sorry."_

_"Oi, Sakaki!" Some guy in a tuxedo yelled, making both look up. "The director wants to see you!"_

_Nanashi looked up at him apologetically and slid quietly away, vanishing before he even turned to look after her. Such a sweet kid… and yet still very much a little Sakaki. Yuichi had had this vague hope that, since she saw so little of him, she would turn out completely different and be content with a long, peaceful life. Feh._

_Yasuhiro wandered up and stood at the window next to him. He had a talent for keeping away when his presence was difficult—and then still showing up at a bad time. He opened his mouth to say something but only squawked in surprise as, faster than thought, Yuichi grabbed his collar and hauled him against the window._

_"If I outlive her," he warned the Jedi. "I am going to kill you."

* * *

_

Chiyo woke again, much less painfully this time, to find that something was licking her face with a tiny, sandpaper-like tongue. She just had time to notice before Marco was once again yanked away from her and deposited roughly across the room. "What's your _malfunction_, cat?"

"Nyaa."

"Don't give me that look. She doesn't need your slobber all… eh? You up?"

Chiyo tried to reply, but all that came out was a sort of mumble.

"Here," now that he wasn't talking to Marco, his speech was more taciturn. "This will make you feel better."

The mouth of a small bottle was pressed to her lips. Whatever was in it burned like nothing else, but also filled her with a light, buoyant feeling. After a few seconds, she was feeling sure of herself enough to sit up and look at her caretaker. Though he wasn't making any particular effort to look dangerous, his features were positively lupine. _To think I used to be scared of Kagura!_

"Hey," he greeted.

"I recognize you…!" She normally tried to be more polite, but Chiyo was still a little addled. "You're…"

"Bang," he said, pointing his finger at her.

That brought her up short. "Huh?"

"I've been getting that a lot. Different fifth-rate bounty hunters saying, 'I know you, you're-!' but I usually shoot them before they can finish the sentence."

"Oh…" Chiyo shook her head, but the cobwebs stuck. "What… happened to me?"

"I have no idea. Believe it or not, I caught you falling out of the bottom of Osaka. You had a concussion, three broken ribs, a _lot_ of bruises…"

"Why does my arm hurt so much?"

"That would be, uh…" he said it quickly and under his breath, almost as if he hoped she wouldn't catch it. "Phantom pain."

"Phantom…?" Chiyo put her hand on the side of her neck and moved it down her shoulder until it encountered a pin. This pin held her empty right sleeve up to the shoulder of her shirt. As the realization hit her, she slowly turned as pale as a sheet.

"Here it comes," Yuichi commented to the cat.

"Oh my GOD! What the… how did… where…? G-GOD! _I can't believe it! _What in the world _happened to me?_"

"Hey," Yuichi put a hand on her (whole) shoulder and shook her lightly. "Don't worry. It's nothing to freak out about."

Still frantic, she looked him up and down. "Th-that's easy for you do say. You still have both arms!"

"Hmph." He wiggled his fingers in her face. "Fake." He thumped his heel on the deck. "Fake." He leaned close to her and pointed to his eyes with two fingers. "These're fake too. You'll be fine."

"Oh… sorry. I'll, um…"

Yuichi watched her go step-by-step through a Jedi calming exercise; while he fought back a wave of bitter memories, the struggle was invisible from the outside. When her breathing had returned to normal, he stood slowly. "I'm getting a beer. Do you want something to drink?"

"Do you have any milk?" she asked in a subdued tone.

"Milk?" he chuckled. "We have a child, here. I'll go look." _But beer?_ he thought to himself, _And I guess here we have a moron. Oh, well._

He returned later with a pair of bottles. Being extra-careful not to mix them up, he handed her the milk and kicked back in his chair, resting his feet on the bed past hers. She curiously watched him take a long sip and grimace harshly.

"How is it?" she asked.

"It tastes like piss," he said amiably. "How's the milk?"

"Great!" she replied with muted cheer, "It's even good warm."

"Is it really that good? Maybe I'll have to get some."

They sat for a while enjoying (or whatever it was Yuichi was doing) their drinks, Chiyo pausing to poke at her riven shoulder and looking almost comically baffled. Not long ago, she would have been completely traumatized, but now it was just kind of strange to get used to.

"Well, you always wanted to bring down the Empire single-handed, didn't you?"

"Mr. Sakaki!"

"Sorry. Couldn't resist."

"No, no… I'm overreacting." A strange thing to say after you've had a limb hacked off, but it was turning into very a strange day. "So… what happens now?"

"Well, about that," Yuichi placed his empty bottle by his feet and threaded his fingers behind his head. "I had an exchange with my employer. He said that he's going to join this Rebel Armada that's gathering."

"A Rebel Armada?" Why did Chiyo find that thought so disturbing?

"He couldn't give me coordinates, of course, but he arranged a place for you to meet one of his contacts. I'll have to drop you off at a specific location on Thyferra and leave."

"And leave?"

"Yeah, they don't trust me. I have a… reputation."

"What kind?"

"You have one, too, you know. It's small so far, but rumors are spreading. I was expecting you to be a little bigger, you know, more threatening."

Chiyo nodded sadly. "I wish I was."

"Hey, being small and cute can work out for you better," Yuichi ruffled her hair. "Take it from someone who's big, ugly and scary. Being cute is… um…" he paused and considered. "It's… stronger."

"Stronger?"

"I'm a bounty-hunter, not a poet."

* * *

Two stormtroopers moved through the jungle carefully, weapons at the ready. It was midday, but the air around them was still thick with shadows and a sweet breeze that reached them even through their helmets' filter. If they'd bothered to look up, they'd have seen Endor's beautiful blue sky and the pale crescent of a _Death Star_ under heavy reconstruction.

"Damn," one trooper grunted. "How're we supposed to find these guys?"

"Stupid extermination order," the other complained.

Guarding the Shield Bunker had been a pretty cushy job until the locals had started acting up. They were little furry creatures, varying in height from 1 to 3 feet, lithe and agile predators of the smaller mammals. Though no match for the Imperials in any kind of fight, they sabotaged speeder-bikes, laid traps and stole provisions all the time. The Imperial Commander had growled that if he had to 'cut _one more_ trooper down from a tree...' and let his threat hang in the air ominously.

Now these two unfortunate men, as well as dozens of their comrades, combed the jungle in a vain attempt to follow their Grand Moff's command. After about three hours, though, one of them took off his helmet and sat down. "We're outta sensor range, right?"

"Yeah. I brought the drinks." The other removed his helmet as well and leaned on his rifle. "So what should we do about the locals? You know we'll never find them."

"I don't know, man. They're like ghosts. I'll bet we'll go through this whole patrol without seeing one of them."

"You're probably right…"

"Meow." It was not the actual sound of a cat, but 'meow' serves as a good onomatopoeia for it. Both troopers rose as one and turned towards it. One of the locals stood before them, staring defiantly with its arms akimbo.

"What's this?" the first trooper asked, "Just one?"

"Meow! Meow!" The call was taken up by dozens of the bizarre creatures as they started popping out of the brush all around them. Gray, brown, even a few that seemed calico. They spread out in a wide semicircle, gazing at the troopers with clear, innocent eyes.

"There's a whole bunch of them now!"

"What do you think they want?"

Then all at once, the creatures all cracked identical, absolutely freaky smiles full of sharp teeth. "S-something's wrong, man!"

"No shit, Master Yoda. That your Jedi intuition?" He leveled his blaster at the lead cat-person, but they were suddenly swarming all over him, biting into the joints of his armor and scratching at his face with barbed, bacteria-laden claws. "Ah! Ow! Oh, no! Help!"

"I got you man!" the other trooper said, taking aim with his own rifle, "Hold still!"

"You don't got anything!" the first shrieked, knocking the blaster out of his hands. "Help me, you moron, don't shoot me!"

"Now I'm unarmed! AHHH!"

The mighty forces of the Empire beat a hasty retreat.

* * *

With the vast cyan expanse of Hoth as its backdrop, the Rebel Armada was an impressive sight. Dozens of military vessels were arrayed at its core, from sleek blockade runners like the _Katana_ to ungainly destroyers, all painted shining green since arriving.

Around them, untold hundreds of mercenaries, privateers, and private vessels hung in a cloud, carefully cataloged and watched. If any of them tried to leave now, they'd be blasted from space by the patrols of Seraphs that wheeled around the very edges of their formation.

The product of alien science, their flagship stood out oddly. The _Mon Remonda _was shaped like a colossal manta ray, at least twice the length of the next largest vessel. Its mysterious owners had an interest in the fall of the human Empire, and while their motives might have been less than altruistic, Kurosawa couldn't afford to pass such a weapon up.

Matsuyama brought his shuttle to a stop at a respectful distance and hailed as prescribed. Of course, it wasn't the craft he had left the _Death Star _in; he'd abandoned that one in his staged "capture" two sectors back. Now he and his associate were officially MIA according to Imperial records.

"Still gives you chills, doesn't it?" Chihiro asked. He jumped. Though he was pretty sure she didn't try, the younger officer had a tendency to sneak up on him.

"The thought of so many Rebels in one place? Yep."

"It's the largest fleet assembled in centuries," she said, resting a hand on the back of his chair. "Ever since the invasion fleet that took Coruscant for the Tanizakis eight hundred years ago."

"Incredible."

"We won't be able to leave until they attack, now. Have any second thoughts?"

"Are you kidding?" Matsuyama rubbed his temples. "Of course I do! This is a huge step. But… you know, I always made fun of them, but Kenichi and Shiro are sharp. They knew something was up. I couldn't have kept it up much longer."

"Well… I hope you can do as well for us as you did for them."

"Yeah, me too."


	24. The Green Dot

**24: The Green Dot**

"Hmph…" Yuichi noted his change of setting dispassionately. He sat on the edge of a walkway on Coruscant, the heavy sky overhead loosing sheet after sheet of cold rain. He flicked his cigarette over the edge and watched the tiny ember spiral into the darkness below his feet. "It's been a while."

"It has." Nanashi sat next to him and, as usual, there was a bit of distance between them. It wasn't due to a lack of affection on either's part; it was just the kind of people they were. "How are you?"

"Apart from you being dead? _Pfft! _Fine." He could smell the wet pavement and feel its roughness beneath his hands. This was obviously no ordinary dream. "This real?"

"From a certain point of view."

"I hate that mind-warping Jedi relativistic bullcrap." Mr. Sakaki didn't notice that he was moderating his language as he always had around her. "Are you my daughter or am I just having a dream?"

"I'm here."

He looked at her and turned his gaze back to the chasm beneath them. He fumbled for a moment, then, "You… uh, look well."

Her lips quirked upward slightly. "Is it that hard to say something nice?"

"Take what you can get, ya little brat."

"Ahh… It's been a while since anyone's called me 'little.' I kinda missed it."

Yuichi made a sound that might have been a laugh. "Speaking of little, what's with the twerp?"

"I'm sorry?"

"This, uh, Chiyo-chan. How does she know us?"

"Oh, you've met Chiyo-chan! She's my… well. Master Kamineko's student."

"The last Jedi, eh?"

"Yes."

He considered for a time. "So why the hell is she so disgustingly cute?"

Nanashi shrugged. "No idea."

"You _know_ I can't stand cute things," he growled, sounding almost sulky. In response, the younger Sakaki laughed out loud. It was startling--her father couldn't remember the last time either of them had laughed like that. He smiled a little out of reflex. "What?"

"I just missed you," she sighed, still grinning.

"So is there a high and mighty cosmic purpose for this visitation?"

"No. I just wanted to see you before I had to go," she giggled again, taking in the grim landscape. "You're in as sunny a mood as ever, I see… oh, hello, Marco." The huge marble-calico cat meandered around them and poked her side. She picked him up and nuzzled his furry cheek. "You look hungry."

"Why, yes, as a matter of fact, I am!" Marco replied.

Sakaki Sr. stared.

"You'd better feed him when he wakes up," Nanashi advised as she put the cat down. Marco looked between them. "If you'll excuse me, I have a dream of my own to attend." He nodded to Nanashi, "Master," and then to Mr. Sakaki. "Idiot-who-gives-me-food."

Nanashi laughed again as the cat vanished. "…the _hell?_" Yuichi managed. "He'd probably like you more if you didn't throw him across the room," his daughter explained lightly.

The Black Knight lit another cigarette and regarded her oddly. "I've never seen you like this… you were always such a serious kid. What gives, eh?"

"All through my life, I felt like there was this huge weight on my shoulders." The young woman leaned back, closing her eyes and smiling softly. "It's such a relief, you know..."

"Huh? What's a relief?" It had stopped raining at some point during their conversation; though the clouds still hung thickly over them, the landscape was somehow less foreboding. "…Nanashi?"

"You'll see, some day." Sakaki rose to a crouch and kissed his cheek. "I, I have to go now. 'Bye, father."

He blinked at the abrupt farewell. "Yeah. See you later."

Her cheer faded. "Probably not."

"Now hold on!" he yelled, but his eyes were already opening on the _Dark Charger_'s cockpit ceiling. "Goddammit," he said softly. "Nanashi…"

* * *

"Yuichi Sakaki. The man's an animal. No compassion, no restraint, coldest bastard you ever met. He'll take _anyone_ if you pay enough and kill anyone who gets in his way to do it." Shiro placed a hard-copy on Grand Moff Kimura's desk and stood back. "This is the one that Matsuyama hired."

Kimura took the paper in hand and adjusted his opaque glasses. "Hm. And we're certain the old Intelligence Chief was bad?"

"Yes, sir," Kenichi said, stepping up next to his partner. "I put a worm on his console two days before he left. It captured the message on the end there."

"I see it…" it was a text-only message to the Black Knight. "Who's this 'guest' he's talking about?"

"We don't know, but there're a few theories going around the office. We think it's most likely that girl that Lord Nochichi was showing interest in. We know she was involved in that… er, incident on Bespin, and that's where Sakaki here resurfaced."

"And more importantly, why do I care?"

Shiro blinked. "Uh, sir? It's… I thought that it was your charge to eliminate the Rebellion. She's obviously important to them, and if she's the one who destroyed the _Implacable_…"

"Ah, yes, the Rebellion," Kimura said quietly, as if just remembering. Had he really been _that _obsessed with Kaori? "Yes. Did Matsuyama ever get a reply to this?"

"Well, sir, as you can see there, Matsuyama tells him to 'follow the green dot' when they get out of Thyferra Primary Spaceport. A day after he left, Sakaki sent a message that said 'Green dot? What the hell are you talking about?' So if we wanted to take them, we could probably figure something out."

"I like that idea. I will give it serious thought. Now before you go, gentlemen, how do you feel about this?" He held a notebook out to them. Kenichi took it and the two intelligence men leaned together to look.

"Er, what is it, sir?"

"My proposal for the new female uniforms."

"Well… uh…" Kenichi was tongue-tied. "Well."

"I don't think it'll fly," Shiro commented with a smile, "But it'd sure be nice!"

"I thought so, too. Wish me luck."

* * *

Towering trees of an impossible verdant hue swayed in a thick, fragrant breeze under a ridiculously blue sky. The city, shot through with bands and speckles of forest, was built from a white/red/orange clay that stayed cool even in the punishing sunlight. Traffic was almost entirely pedestrian, happy, unhurried people going about their days.

On Thyferra, sunglasses were standard issue. A touch closer to its sun than most humans were comfortable with, the rainforest world was ridiculously bright, hot and humid. Now, the first two didn't bother the Tatooine-raised Chiyo in the least, but that last had her sagging like a wilted flower.

She and Yuichi walked through Thyferra Planetary Spaceport, dressed in the Thyferran style of loose, light garments in pastel hues. There was also _another_ style that many young women chose to wear, and it ensured that the guards and customs agents were always at least a little distracted.

A good thing, too. Though most of them were too young to remember the modest fame of the Black Knight, Yuichi always ran a slight risk landing on any civilized world. As for Chiyo, she still hadn't figured out how to do her pigtails one-handed, and they'd broken out the green dye again. (The Customs Agent had given her a strange look, which she found rather rude, but a much ruder glower from Yuichi resolved the situation.)

"This place is beautiful!" Chiyo said brightly, managing to seem upbeat even thoroughly run down by the climate as she was. "I read all about it, you know, on the way here. There's an indigenous race here, did you know? They're called the Vratix! They're these great big insects, at least 2 meters tall…"

As the girl nattered on, Yuichi glanced at her sideways. He happened to know that she'd barely slept since awakening the first night, that whatever happened to her had struck a much deeper blow than just taking off her arm, _and _that she was on her way to join the impossible fight against the Empire. And yet here she was, sunny as Thyferra itself. _Resilient little bugger, _he thought appreciatively.

"…they know all about the rainforest's plants, in fact, I read that Vratix invented almost 70 of all the medicines on the galactic market. Isn't that incredible?"

"Sure," Yuichi said disinterestedly. "Wait, did you say something about carbonite in there?"

Chiyo blinked. "Yeah, uh, they perfected the process for preserving living things in carbonite here."

"So that's…" Yuichi slapped his forehead. "Of course!"

"What?"

"I didn't manage to get Ohyama, and he made off with this block of carbonite from Osaka. I couldn't figure out why he wanted it."

"Ms. Tomo!" Chiyo gasped. "It must be her! I _wondered _why I sensed… Mr. Sakaki, are you still after Ohyama?"

"Yeah, and I'll get him, too. Taught the arrogant little cock everything he knows, but not everything _I _know."

"M-mr. Sakaki! Please, you have to help us rescue her!"

"She's probably dead, kid. Those industrial tanks aren't made to-"

"Don't even _say _that!" Chiyo took his sleeve and stared up at him earnestly. "Please! I'm begging you, will you please help us?"

Yuichi turned away. Damn puppy-dog eyes! This was why he hated cute things! "All right," he said out of the corner of his mouth, "Fine."

Chiyo threw her arm around him. "Oh, thank you, Mr. Sakaki!"

"Don't mention it," he grumbled, pushing her away gently.

They exited the spaceport (it was mostly open air, like nearly all civic areas on Thyferra) and sat on a bench. The city stretched out before them and above in a network of bridges amid the towering trees. As well as the usual human traffic, they now saw small groups of Vratix leaping about on powerful, reverse-jointed legs.

"They look kinda creepy," Yuichi observed.

"Mm," Chiyo settled back and looked over the searingly bright landscape, drumming her fingers absently on the bench. "So, a green dot?"

"He didn't say anything more. I guess- oh, check it out." Without an ounce of concern, he indicated a small green laser-sight hovering on his chest. "Well, _that _makes me feel welcome." He raised his middle-finger in the sniper's general direction and stood. "This is goodbye for now."

"Goodbye, Mr. Sakaki, and thank you."

Without another word, the Black Knight strode off and instantly vanished in the sparse crowd. The laser sight slid to the ground and skittered off in another direction. "Okay," Chiyo said gamely, and followed it.

The sniper must have had an awesome position, because the dancing sight led her for quite a trip. Whenever she lost it, he would shine it in her eye and circle the ground at her feet until she started again. Chiyo followed the little light across several walkways, finally into a Vratix quarter, where the insect-men were polite enough to avoid squashing her in their breakneck leaping.

Here, something rather eerie happened. A large Vratix, nearly six feet tall, landed squarely in her path. His exoskeleton was painted solidly black, unbroken except by his dull eyes and strips of white cloth wound through his claws. "Eep! Er, h-hello," she greeted timidly.

The monstrous creature nodded to her gravely and leapt again, gone as fast as it had come. She looked around but none of the other Vratix seemed to notice; she almost wondered if it the visitation had happened at all. What was that all about? Before she could consider further, the laser sight was again in her eye. "Ow! I'm going!"

Of course, it occurred to her that she was being steadily led away from crowds. It would make sense if she was meeting someone who wanted to be unnoticed, but it would also make sense if the sniper wanted her to be in a place with no witnesses…

_You're just being paranoid,_ she berated herself.

As she mounted the walkway out of the Vratix quarter, though, she just about had a litter of kittens. For, about thirty yards away and walking towards the spaceport were the last two people she ever expected to see.

Miru and Yuka moved in a great hurry, flushed from the planet's heat. Of all the places to see those two! When had they left Tatooine? "Hey!" she called happily, momentarily forgetting all about her quest after the laser sight.

Yuka turned and gasped in surprise--not just at seeing Chiyo, of course, but seeing her with long green hair and one arm. She dropped a bundle that she had been carrying and the light cloth instantly billowed out in the constant breeze. It was a banner they were evidently going to hold between them. _'Welcome C-Chan!' _it read.

"That's cute," Chiyo said with a smile… then noticed its design. As Yuka tried to recover it, she saw that the message was painted over a large green circle. Or rather, a green dot. _They_ were the welcoming party.

Which meant…

The laser sight blazed once more in her eyes, and this time she doubted that it was just a friendly reminder.

"Do you think they're all right?" Yomi asked. She was stretched out on one of their room's beds, flipping through a book of Hyperspatial Mathematics. Talking to Chiyo had reminded her of her own, tragically interrupted, studies of long ago and she was thinking of resuming some time. She had been an ace student, back in the day.

Kagura leaned back in their only chair, feet resting on a small table and a magazine spread across her chest. Though she had been laid-back before, the humidity made her positively torpid. "What could go wrong?" she replied lazily, "Nobody knows we're here."

"That's if you trust Matsuyama." Yomi marked her place and set the book aside.

"I think he's all right. His guy saved us on Bespin, after all."

"Not _all_ of us."

Kagura sat up and looked at her, a bit abashed. "Sorry, I didn't mean… well… uh, I was gonna go get something to eat. Want anything?"

"No, I'm not hungry."

"You're not…" the soldier blinked, "Since when are _you_ not hungry?"

Yomi's eyes narrowed. "What are you saying?"

"Well, do your thing." Kagura said quickly, then tossed the magazine onto the bed next to her friend. "Check this out, though. It's open to the page."

As the soldier left, Yomi looked the indicated page of _Thyferra News and Galaxy Report_ over with morbid interest. It concerned the incident on Bespin, telling the tale of a (largely fictional) battle between heroic stormtroopers and a huge band of scurvy privateers, with a large color illustration of Osaka covered with cutaways to show key points in their epic clash. Nowhere was Princess Kaori mentioned or the fact that most of the casualties were civilians rising against the Imperials.

There was a brief obituary for Ayumu, who had been killed in her office by a planted bomb. It seemed she hailed from Thyferra and her family ran a good bit of the Bacta trade here, which explained why the incident, five sectors distant, was even covered. Yomi read the retrospective with mixed feelings, wondering how much the poor woman's arm had been twisted to make her sell them out. _That isn't the face of a traitor, is it? _she wondered, looking at the sweetly smiling picture.

There was also a small collection of her wit and wisdom, which, at first blush didn't seem very witty or wise. But on further inspection, Yomi found that if you thought about the sayings sort of sideways…

She tossed the magazine aside. Thinking about Osaka, the Baroness and the Empire in general only reminded her of Tomo. With a sigh, Yomi returned to her mathematics.

A vicious emerald bolt grazed across Chiyo's temple and punched a hole in one of the Vratix dwellings. For a few seconds the sky was dark with utterly silent but obviously panicking insect men, the thrum of their vestigial wings battering the air. With a surprised cry, Chiyo stumbled backwards and tried to catch herself with an arm that wasn't there.

"Oof!"

Fortunately, Miru and Yuka had the sense to take cover. The sniper had no reason to pay them any heed until he was done with Chiyo.

As she falteringly regained her feet, she realized that it was pretty cold comfort. How long did those things take to recycle? The answer came just as she started to run, blowing a crater in the bridge at her feet. She stumbled but somehow kept going, her strength ebbing quickly in the horrible humidity.

Her upbringing made it difficult to cope with _too much _water.

A bolt shrieked by ahead of her. With the Force to warn her of incoming shots, a single attacker wasn't really much of a problem; but still, she didn't have any idea of what to do about him. She sprawled behind cover and frantically turned the problem over in her mind… but then the question was taken out of her hand.

Streaking around her came dark, hulking forms; black-painted Vratix spreading in a semicircle from Chiyo's cover, springing with impossible speed from perch to perch. A single bolt stabbed out, narrowly missing one of them, before the whole phalanx of armored monsters descended on the shooter.

Chiyo thought she might have heard a brief, strangled cry, but managed to convince herself that it was her imagination.

* * *

The _Katana _rushed back towards the Rebel Armada, having collected Chiyo and her party. Kagura found her alone in its observation deck, pondering darkly much as she had after the battle with the _Implacable_, absently drumming her fingers on the transparisteel view-port and staring coldly at her reflection.

"Hey," the soldier greeted with forced cheer, "How's the big war hero? And how's that new arm working out?"

Chiyo took her hand off of the window and made a fist. "Pretty well," she said in an eerie parody of her usual good cheer, "Isn't it amazing what the Thyferrans can do?"

"What happened to you anyway? Was it Nochichi?"

Chiyo winced. "…yes."

"Every time you run up against that guy you get messed up a little worse. First the river, then the radiation burns and now… but hey, what are you doing up here? Miru and Yuka are looking for you."

"Just thinking."

"Listen, they mentioned something pretty weird. What's all this about a 'diminutive slayer?' Yuka wouldn't tell me."

"A hero of Vratix prophecy. They think it's me."

Kagura smiled and punched her shoulder. "Ha! It even has 'short' built right into it! A hero of prophecy? I knew you had it in ya, runt!"

"It's not funny, Ms. Kagura! I was their signal to rise out of bondage."

"Rise out of… but they're pacifists aren't they?"

"They still are. They…" Chiyo looked at the ground, her voice suddenly thick. "They tore off their own wings."

"What?"

"The wings serve no purpose, but…" the girl swallowed, "But they're a symbol of virtue and ascending spirit. I can't believe they'd… they'd actually give that up."

"Hey," Kagura put an arm across Chiyo's back. "You can't control what those idiots do, Chiyo-chan."

"But… but I…" tears started tracking down her face. She spoke very softly. "I don't _want_ this… everywhere I go people get hurt and die…" This last was almost inaudible. "I'm just a kid."

Before Kagura could respond, the young Jedi threw herself into her arms and started sobbing. The soldier stood, hugging her back hesitantly, as close to absolute panic as she ever had been. She didn't know what to do about this!

"I'm sorry, Ms. Kagura! I'm sorry!"

"No, don't worry. It'll—uh—it'll be all right…" But then Chiyo fell silent, face still buried in her chest. Kagura stroked her hair gently, trying to think of something appropriately comforting to say. Suddenly, the girl tensed. "No…" her voice was shockingly clear and hard. "This won't do."

"Chiyo-chan, what--?"

The Jedi suddenly tore herself free, spinning and striking the viewport with her artificial hand hard enough to make the transparisteel ring in its frame. "I _can't _go on like this! I can't be a child anymore!"

"What? No one's…"

Chiyo ignored her. "I'm done…" _WHACK!_ "…being a weak…" _WHACK!_ "…_child!_" She hit the viewport even harder, but then the sound seemed to startle her out of whatever had gripped her. "Uh, sorry," she said abashedly. "I… sorry. Um, I need to be alone for a while." She scurried away as Kagura tried to reply.

Left alone, the soldier ran her hands over the viewport. Sure enough, there were four small divots in the metal, left by the girl's slender fingers. Kagura felt a chill in spite of herself. And honestly, she wasn't sure whether she was scared _for_ Chiyo…

Or _of _her.


	25. IAYF

**25: IAYF**

"Chiyo-chan! Are you here?" Miru called. Her voice echoed flatly in a stale, cold air of cargo bay fifteen. Clutching her jacket about her, she entered hesitantly, eyes scanning the darkened room. "I know you're in here!"

"Go away!" Chiyo yelled, voice thin and strained. Miru couldn't tell where it was coming from. Even though she knew the older girl wouldn't hurt her, it was still a little frightening.

Miru continued into the room, breath rising in plumes to the ceiling five meters above. Everything was an identical slate color except for inky shadows that crowded in and hung over her as if threatening to drop on her head. As she neared a particular stack of metal crates, air whispered faintly and something skittered across them to the other side of the room. "You're not hiding from me, are you? Chiyo-chan, you're being ridiculous!"

"Miru, please! Leave me alone!"

"Chiyo, would you--? Come on! I'm your friend… you can tell me anything!" For a time, the only sound was the distant throbbing of the _Katana's_ engines. "Please!"

"Miru, is it so hard to believe that just once I actually do want to be alone?"

"Frankly, yes. The others listen because they don't realize how insecure you are, Chiyo-chan. You only pull something like this when you want to see if anybody cares enough to chase after you. And I, for one, am going to keep on you until you stop being such an idiot!"

"That's crazy! I don't…" The prodigy fell silent. After a long pause to consider, she finally dropped down right next to her friend, eliciting a startled yelp. "You're brutal, Miru."

"Brutal? _Pfft! _It's good Yuka didn't find you. She's way too nice."

Chiyo giggled softly. "I'm so glad you guys are here." She slid down the crates to sit at their base. "So… what now?"

"That's up to you." Miru sat next to her. "You got the dye out, I see… that's good. It made you look like a sukeban." She started running her fingers through Chiyo's hair. "Here, I'll do up your pigtails again. Do you want to tell me about it?"

"About what?"

"I don't know. How 'bout whatever has you playing Jack the Ripper down here?"

Her casualness was bracing. "I… don't know how to say it."

Miru started humming a tune, holding up handfuls of her friend's tresses critically. She was very deliberate when it came to these things; Chiyo knew that she'd be stuck there for a while.

"It's… I… bugged out."

"No kidding."

"But it was worse than that. I was so… so _angry_. I hated myself for being so weak, I hated the Empire for causing all this, I hated the Vratix for twisting themselves because of me, I hated Kagura for trying to comfort me… I even hated that stupid viewport--I don't know why. I'd never felt anything like that before." She tried to hang her head, but got yanked back up. "Ow!"

"Sorry. This is delicate work, C-chan… hey, keep going."

"I don't know what else to say… it's… I'm scared. I can't believe that that's a part of me. I can't believe the things I've done, what I've learned. It's still all foggy, but what I remember is just… Miru, what _am _I?"

Miru tugged her friend's pigtails a little. That was probably the fastest she'd ever done a person's hair. "Done. As for your question… you're Chiyo-chan. What else could you be?"

"I…"

"No, listen to me," Miru took her shoulders. "Whatever you've done, whatever you've found out about yourself… you _always _had it in you to do those things. What you've found out has _always _been true. You're you, and you don't have to be anything you don't want. Feel any better?"

"Hadn't thought about it that way." Chiyo rested her chin on her knees. "You _know _it's not that simple, though."

"Yeah, but admit it. You feel better. Now will you come with me? Yuka's probably freaking out by now." What else could Chiyo do? But even as they left together, Miru had to wonder what her friend must have gone through…

What indeed?

* * *

_As the _Silver Rose_ escaped into hyperspace, Chiyo landed on the platform they had only recently vacated. She sprang from the cockpit in a single bound and landed lightly on the pavement, un-ignited lightsaber at the ready. If there was anybody lying in wait, they'd get a nasty surprise…_

_But instead of a crowd of stormtroopers, she was confronted by a cluster of small, ugly creatures. "We are the Ughnaut delegation!" the lead one said in a gravelly voice, "Welcome to Cloud City!"_

_"Welcome! Welcome!" the others chorused, bowing to her. "…elcome!" a slow one on the end finished when all the others were done, falling on his face. "We'll take your luggage!" one volunteered. "Let's, let's!" the others agreed._

_"I don't have anything…" she replied uncomfortably, searching for the ambush. "Thank you for the offer, though."_

_"We're to take you to Lord Nochichi," the leader said. "If you'll come with us?" She gave a start upon hearing his name, but then nodded gravely. "Please."_

_"…uggage!" the slow one said._

_Fortunately, nobody started singing 'Follow the Yellow Brick Road' as they set out. Apart from their feet on the decking, the city was eerily quiet. "What happened here?" she asked the Ughnauts._

_"Shooting and yelling," one replied. "We hid," another added._

_"I can sympathize," Chiyo said absently. She couldn't sense her friends. Had she missed them, or…? No. No, no, no. They must have left ahead of her. "Where are we going?"_

_"Home."_

_For the Ughnauts, of course, home was the deepest part of Osaka, the dimly-lit industrial sectors. They left her at the entrance of the carbonite refinery, scurrying back to their hiding places. Deep down, the girl wished she could do the same._

_The refinery was nothing special, but to her young, agitated mind it looked like a scene out of Dante. By this time the equipment had been running for a while, and had filled the vast room with thin tan smoke, rising in pillars from stacks set around open troughs of carbonite. Wind swirled from a great chasm that emptied right out into Bespin's atmosphere. If it were humans that worked here, it would never have met Imperial safety standards._

_"Ms. Tomo…?" Chiyo looked around in confusion. The sense of her friend was extremely weak and distant… as if the other were sleeping deeply or on the edge of death. Before she could even begin to search for it, though, her senses were suddenly overpowered._

_"**Welcome, Chiyo-chan.**" Darth Nochichi drifted down out of the swirling smoke above her, cloak billowing in a nonexistent wind. A surge of anger and fear rose in her, but she smothered it quickly. You have to stay serene… a Jedi is serene… "**Have you come to join me or to die?**"_

_Chiyo ignited her lightsaber and held it at the ready. Its cold blue light cleared her mind instantly, focusing her like a razor._

_"**To die, then. For vengeance, is that it?**"_

_"No," Chiyo kept her voice level and her mind clear. Emotions stormed within her, ignored. "I'm here to stop you because you're evil."_

_"**Evil… that is a concept that has no meaning to me. I could understand vengeance, however. I killed your father, after all. And your master… I expected better of Nanashi.**"_

_The Jedi refused to be baited. "That's enough."_

_"**Very well, then. If you won't release your anger, attack me calmly; see how that works out for you.**"_

_Chiyo leapt to the attack! It was a gorgeous, seven-foot, Force-aided leap that carried her all the way to the floating Sith Lord with her azure blade whirling about her. It would have been perfect if she weren't intercepted by a flying crate in midair and knocked sprawling._

_She rose unsteadily and tried to attack again, but another crate clipped the back of her head and she staggered, dropping her saber. A third flung itself at her face, but Chiyo reached out with the Force and stopped it two feet off._

_"Ha!" she crowed, mere moments before a lead pipe rose behind her and swung into her short-ribs with a sickening crack. Suddenly unimpeded, the crate rushed forth—_

_"**Why don't you give up and hand over your lightsaber?**"_

_Mustering force of will she hadn't known was in her, Chiyo rose painfully and called the lightsaber to her hand. "You can take it…" she gritted, swiping at the streams of blood gushing from her nose and lip. "From my cold, dead hand."_

_"**Hmm… fair enough.**"_

_Nochichi ignited his own weapon, effortlessly swept hers aside and struck. For a few seconds, all was silent. Chiyo stared down in numb shock, trying to figure out how she could be looking at her hand clutching the lightsaber at that particular angle…. An invisible fist knocked her over, skidding across the floor to the chasm's edge._

_"**You cannot win. I was a Sith Lord before your father was even born… actually, in a way, I **_**am_ your father._**_"_

_The statement slashed through Chiyo's shock. "_What?_"_

_Nochichi seemed to enjoy this idea. "**Yes. Chiyo-chan, I am your father!**"_

_"But… that's not possible!"_

_"**You know it to be true!**"_

_"No, seriously! How is that possible?" She rose to a crouch, eyes trying and failing to focus on the monster before her. "I… you're an Eddorian and I'm human!"_

_"**Well… mostly.**" Chiyo stared. If he were capable of reading human facial expressions, Nochichi would have thought hers priceless. "**Eddorian and human minds both have their advantages; it's only natural that certain parties would want to take advantage of this. When Mihama found out what had been done, he… took exception. Our argument was rather short.**"_

_"You… he…" Chiyo shook her head frantically. "No. No! It can't be!"_

_"**Join me, Chiyo-chan. Together we can…**"_

_"_No!_" Nochichi trailed off, unused to being interrupted. "I'd sooner die!"_

_There followed a long, grim stare-down. Chiyo stood, arm wrapped about her shoulder, staring with all the defiance she could muster through the haze that had descended upon her. Beneath his armor, Nochichi turned such a brilliant, violent red that the whole room seemed to glow. He actually started shaking in the air, so angry was he… but then, all at once, he seemed to shrug._

_"**Then die.**"_

_The lead pipe slammed across her chest and she fell.

* * *

_

"Is this true?" Empress Yukari shrieked. "Nyamo, you, you slime!"

"I couldn't hide it forever, could I?" Professor Kurosawa sat back slowly, folding her hands on her stomach. "You must feel like such an idiot… sharing all those drinks with one of the Rebellion's Big Four."

"I can't _believe _you!"

"You know, as a person, you're not so bad," Kurosawa observed. "If only you were a better ruler, we might have been friends. Best friends, even."

"I would never be friends with such a… such a…" If there weren't so many light-years between them, Yukari might have tried to strangle her with her bare hands. "Don't think it's so easy being Empress!"

"I don't… but I also think that things can't go on the way you're taking them. I am truly sorry, Empress Yukari. We're just playing the parts we were given."

"Well…" Yurkari smirked. "It won't go easy for you. I was about to tell you about this new agent Nochichi got for me. She's something incredible… heh, heh."

"Actually, I have an incredible one of my own," Kurosawa replied.

"What? But- hey, that's not fair!"

The Professor blinked. "How is that not fair? You're the one who has the Empire behind you, Nochichi and that damn Death Star of yours…"

"There is that," Yukari conceded.

"Of course, we're gonna knock it out of space pretty soon."

"_What?_" the Empress was absolutely livid. "You… that's… that's…!" At that moment, her nemesis cut the connection and Yukari's manner completely changed. "Absolutely perfect!" she finished, giving an impressive Wicked Witch of the West style cackle. "Abso-friggin'-lutely perfect!"

She turned to another screen and addressed Kimura, who'd been listening in. "Did you hear that? Your plan is working."

"Indeed," he acknowledged, rubbing his chin. "So, is it working well enough that you wouldn't say no to dinner sometime?"

"Not on your life!" the Empress moved to disconnect.

"_Argh! _The bitter taste of def—!" _pwip!_

And meanwhile, Kurosawa turned to Princess Kaori and Matsuyama, who'd been standing in the office with her. "Did you hear that? What could she mean by incredible one?"

"I have a few ideas," Matsuyama answered. "If I'm right, I'll have a name for you inside of a week."

"Do that. And are you clear on your assignment?" Kurosawa asked the Princess.

"Yes. I think it'll be fun."

"Get to it, then. Force be with you." The way she said it, both knew that she meant it. Minamo Kurosawa was just charismatic like that.

As the two of them left together, Matsuyama said, "Hey, did I ever tell you about the time the Empress stole my speeder-bike?"

"Only about a hundred times," Kaori replied amiably.

"It was back in my Academy days, and I was running late…"

* * *

A ways away, Kagura was leaning against a wall waiting for the Princess. She had seriously cleaned up since Thyferra, but now seemed a little careworn. Though she'd really opened up with the soldier during their stay in Osaka, Kaori didn't feel comfortable asking her what the matter was.

"See you later, Princess," Matsuyama said, continuing on his way. "_Oh! _Ms. Kagura, who was it you wanted me to look up?"

"Lars, uh, Owen and Beru…"

"Right. It shouldn't be too tough."

"Thanks, man."

"Lars?" Kaori asked as the former Intelligence Chief walked away. "Weren't they Chiyo-chan's…?"

"Yeah. She hasn't asked any questions--poor kid hasn't had a moment to sit still and think since we lost them. I don't know what I'll tell her if it turns out they're dead or something, though."

"You act so careless, but you're always looking after everyone."

"Not by choice," Kagura grumped. "It's my job."

They walked together for a time. Kagura noticed their path was taking them towards the "Juice Bar," but she didn't really feel like asking why. Why did she follow, then? In the absence of official direction, she'd resumed her duties as Kaori's guard.

"Who was that guy?" Kagura suddenly asked.

"Huh?"

"Matsuyama's guy. The one that shot up all those stormtroopers."

"Oh…" Kaori smiled ruefully. "I only met him once. I'm glad he didn't recognize me. It was at an event… a concert I think. Yeah, you were there! He came storming up and rudely asked me why I was making 'googly eyes' at his daughter."

"That guy! I remember…" Kagura's eyes widened, "Wow, we were still in school back then. Your bodyguards threw him out on his ass? That the one?"

"That's the one," Kaori replied. "That was Yuichi Sakaki. Looks like he mellowed out a bit, though."

"Wow, he sure did." Kagura thought back. "Maybe he learned from the experience, eh?"

Kaori chuckled. "Maybe."

"You seem to be doing a lot better," Kagura commented. "Something happen?"

"Yeah, but it's kind of stupid."

"Try me."

"I… I had a dream about Ms. Sakaki. It made me feel more at peace than I had ever since Alderaan was… since it was gone. I don't know why, I mean, it's just a dream, but I woke up feeling so much better."

The other looked at her sideways. She'd read old stories about Jedi who'd visit people after their deaths. Was this such a case? (Being entirely honest, probably not, but it was a nice thought.)

"I see that look; I know it's weird. But it made me realize I didn't have to rely on her anymore. I can pull through as myself… but do you suppose it _was _real?"

Kagura shrugged. "I wouldn't be the one to ask."

* * *

"Ah, Wedge here's just having a hot streak," Mike said loudly. "Just wait; I'll be the _Katana's _ace pilot in no time!"

Wedge just shook his head and laughed. The two of them sat at a table in the "Juice Bar" with Yomi and a recently deposited Chiyo, who, apart from a slightly distant gaze, seemed almost back to normal. Outside the viewports, the Rebel Armada hung in endless shining ranks, giving a wild headrush to just about every rebel who happened to glance out.

Miru and Yuka had gone to their own table some distance away, and were very absorbed in whatever it was they were doing over there. They were too shy to sit with pilots anyway, being but lowly "powder monkeys."

"I mean, seriously. 'Wedge Antilles, Hero of the Rebellion?' How weird does _that _sound?"

"Well, good luck with that, Mr. Mike … but what in the world are you two wearing?" Chiyo asked. "Is that Mr. Porkins?"

It was as she said: both pilots wore bright-red T-shirts that had the likenesses of Jek Porkins on their chests in black. The backs, she had seen on approaching, had a blatantly huge rebel insignia.

"Oh, these." Wedge sat back so she could see the picture better. "Our old friend's become something of a symbol. Did you see the sensor records of the _Implacable _battle?" Chiyo shook her head. "Before Nochichi got him, he vaped something like twelve fighters. Someone got inspired to make these, and now we have a minor phenomenon."

Wedge wasn't right to call it "minor." The likenesses of Jek Porkins spread far and wide over the following years. In just a generation, he would become a symbol to all for bravely standing against oppression and injustice. Wherever college students would get plucky and anti-authoritarian, out would come the Porkins shirts.

"So you're a smuggler?" Mike asked.

Yomi blinked, coming back from wherever she had been. "Huh?"

"Jeez, what is it with these two? Are you girls high or something?"

Wedge cast an apologetic glance to the women, then turned to his fellow pilot. "We should probably go. We're on patrol in a few minutes."

"Okay…"

As they stood, however, Kaori and Chihiro arrived and bowed to the group in unison. "Hello," Chihiro greeted. "We're on assignment."

"What is it?" Mike asked impatiently. The new arrivals were standing in their path.

"Kurosawa has ordered us to find or make a symbol for the Rebellion," Kaori explained. "Something for us to rally around. Something lovable and yet dangerous. Something charismatic, interesting and maybe a little mysterious."

After an awkward silence, Chiyo looked around in innocent bafflement. "Wh- what's everybody looking at me for? Waugh!" The Princess and her partner each grabbed one of her arms and towed her away. "What are you…? Hey!"

Yomi and the two pilots stared after them.

"I thought Porkins was fine," Wedge commented.

* * *

"**She lives, yet. I have another chance.**"

In the dim confines of the Death Egg, Nochichi pondered this development. He shouldn't be surprised; things had had a way of working out for him like this since before he could remember.

His will went out, extending inky feelers all the way to a secluded, inhospitable world called Anoth. There, in a monastery that had long ago been corrupted by the teachings of the Sith, three young men with orange-red hair knelt at the touch of their master's mind.

"**Go out and find your sister.**"


	26. Desert Palace

(A/N: I'm ashamed to admit that I've never actually read the Star Wars novel with Mako Spince in it, so I'm pretty much just using the name. On further reflection, though, I'm not certain that he's been butchered _that_ badly… how would an opportunistic rich-boy expulsed from the Imperial Academy have turned out in a universe with no Han Solo?)

**26: Desert Palace**

"I'm sorry, Yomi," Kagura said anxiously. "I didn't think it would go like that."

"Forget it," the Valerian snapped, shaking her head, "We shouldn't have expected anything else. Tomo's just another grubby smuggler to them; she did the job she was hired for, so why should they care anymore?"

"But… but she…" Kagura punched the wall next to her. "Damn it! Hasn't Kurosawa ever heard of gratitude? And you know Tomo was gonna try and join us when we got back, you know it!"

"But her intentions don't matter…"

"What, are you taking _their _side?"

"No!" Yomi was furious at the suggestion. "But what were you expecting? That Princess Kaori herself would volunteer to dress up as a bounty hunter, sneak in there and mount a daring rescue?"

"Of course not! That would be ridiculous! But I at least thought… damn."

"I never pegged you as an idealist, Kagura."

"If I wasn't some kind of idealist, what would I be doing in this Rebellion?"

"Point."

"What should we tell Mr. Sakaki to do, though?"

"Well, whatever you guys decide to do, _I'm _going after Tomo," Yomi said grimly. "I'll arrange something with him."

"But you can't leave the Armada. You'll get shot down."

"I'll think of something."

"You'll _think_ of something? Have fun getting blasted six ways to—!"

"Ms. Kagura! There you are!" Kaori seemed to appear from nowhere and grab her arm. "Come here, we need somebody to critique for us."

"Wha-? Critique?"

Yomi almost didn't notice that she was also being propelled along by Chihiro. The woman was practically invisible! "Wait, what do you need me for?"

"Demographics," Chihiro answered vaguely.

Their captors led them to a small, unused room, empty except for a small figure standing under a sheet. "I feel like an idiot," Chiyo complained, "Couldn't we just…?"

"Hush!" Kaori said. "Okay, you two ready?"

"Sure," Kagura replied uncertainly. "What is all this?"

"I guess," Yomi agreed. Living with Tomo for years had taught her to resign herself to things like this, after all. The enthusiasm of others, no matter how irrational, never left a dent in her.

"Okay!" the Princess held out her hand. "I, Kaori…"

"…and I, Chihiro," the former spy continued, "Present you with…"

And they flung the sheet off. Now, no force in the galaxy could have made Chiyo-chan look imposing, but after their determined ministrations, she was certainly looking _something_. She wore a long, charcoal gray jacket that somehow magnified her without looking too large on her, open over simple black clothes that had an… _agile _look to them. Fingerless gloves provided an air of- if not dangerousness- at least competence. The only spot of color on her was a rebel insignia in red on the jacket's sleeve.

Yomi blinked.

Kagura blinked.

"Well?" Kaori asked. "What do you guys think?"

"Uh…" Kagura rubbed her eyes. It was an intangible feeling that closed on her throat like a vise; an impossible aura that the young woman before her was radiating, an aura of… _inspiration_. Just standing in the room with her made Kagura feel like she could take on the entire Imperial Navy with just a space-suit and a knife. "Um, not bad."

"How did you…" Yomi seemed to be cringing away from her. "_Do _that?"

"Is something wrong Ms. Yomi?" Chiyo asked, oblivious to the effect she was projecting. "Are you okay?"

"You should have seen the penguin costume," Chihiro started, but held off when Chiyo shuddered at the memory. "I mean, if we could use cuteness as a weapon…"

"A _penguin _costume?"

"Oh, we got carried away. Don't worry, we didn't actually _make _it. Princess, we should go get more testers."

"Let's! But first… any comments?"

Yomi threw her hands in the air. Kagura put a finger to her chin and said, "The pigtails have to go."

Chiyo put her hands over them. "But I _like _them."

"They're not very intimidating."

"But I don't _want_ to be intimidating…" Chiyo's eyes were wide. Yomi stared at her for a long moment, then suddenly exploded. "Goddammit, you're just too cute!" She stormed away, leaving everyone but Kagura bewildered in her wake.

"She's been like that lately," the soldier explained. "But then, you'd be too if your best friend was frozen in a block of carbonite somewhere and you didn't know if she were alive or dead and you _just needed a little help to save them_…" this last was said staring pointedly at Kaori.

And how did the Princess respond in the face of such blatant insubordination? "Let's… let's go find those subjects, Ms. Chihiro."

"Sure."

The two of them left the room quickly

"I never would've been able to do that before," Kagura looked after them thoughtfully. "Tomo must've been a bad influence on me. Are you doing okay, Chiyo-chan?"

"Of course not," she answered pleasantly, "I'm pretty far from okay."

"I wouldn't be okay either to if they were talking about stuffing me in a penguin costume." The girl sighed and sat in the chair Kaori had vacated, leaning back and closing her eyes. After a few minutes, Kagura became uncomfortable and spoke up. "Sorry. That was kind of a dumbass thing to say, huh?"

"It's okay. You're only human."

"I, uh, I got you something while we were waiting for you on Thyferra."

"Oh?"

"It's… er, a wooden sword. You know, the best souvenir for any occasion. I thought you'd like having an alternative to slashing people with a lightsaber. I'm not sure beating them up is much nicer, but… heh."

Chiyo turned back and smiled softly. "Thank you, Ms. Kagura. If you don't mind though, I seriously, honestly, genuinely would like to be alone for a while."

Kagura didn't understand why the other felt the need to add so many qualifiers; she'd have been convinced just by the tone of voice. In fact, she was suddenly uneasy, and not for a reason that was easy to pin down. Chiyo showed no sign of the terrible rage from earlier, or indeed, any unpleasant emotion, but…

"Right. Okay, I'll see you later."

Once she was out in the _Katana_'s corridors again, she turned the whole situation over in her mind. Tomo frozen, Yomi in angst over it, Chiyo generally weirding out, Sakaki dead, Kaori alienated (for a while, anyway)… and suddenly, she came to a decision.

Kagura grabbed the shoulder of a passing crewman. "You look like you're off duty…"

"Yeah," he answered, amiably enough, "What…?"

"Well, let me tell you something. I'm sick of it all. I'm sick of all these twisted emotions and intangible forces and life-and-death decisions and everybody freaking out and nothing getting solved, so you know what?" She didn't give him a chance to answer. "I'm going to go get the crimson ale Tomo had hidden on her ship and I'm going to get so thoroughly blasted that my great-great-grandkids won't be able to see straight. Wanna come?"

"Sorry, I… crimson ale, did you say?"

* * *

Kaori and Chihiro had brought in more testers, but for some reason, their heart didn't seem to be in it anymore. Once they'd gauged reactions from a fairly wide group, the three of them sat down and conferred.

"Okay, you did this stuff for the Imperials. What's next on our 'Instant Hero' checklist?" Kaori asked. "Exploits, right?"

"Yeah," Chihiro rested her chin on a fist and looked at Chiyo. "What we'd do in the Empire is pick out a few battles they'd been at and inflate their roles, but she's too young to have done much."

"That _is_ a problem… think we'll have to go out and _make _some exploits?"

"That, or just make them up here."

"But…"

Chiyo raised her voice timidly. "I think I have an idea."

* * *

And so our narrative returns to desolate Tatooine.

The fortress/hideout of Mako Spince was the inverted mullet of criminal establishments. That is to say, it was a "party out front, business in the back" sort of place. The inner reaches of his sanctum were clean, state-of-the art offices and laboratories, staffed by people who took their work as seriously as he did.

The front, however…

Unable to afford the usual army of professional, suited, sunglass-sporting minions, he was forced to rely on a slightly… grimier sort. Mercenaries, bounty-hunters and simple goons that, no matter how kind fate was to them, would never ascend from that station due to a lack of intelligence, motivation or both. Such types, of course, needed to be entertained.

The ambiance of the place was similar to that of the cantinas in town, but much, much more so. The Feng Shui here had an ugly stick and an endless supply of those "ill-fated" cards to go around.

Mr. Spince occasionally stopped by to see how his employees were doing, and even more occasionally enjoyed a drink alongside them. Nothing wrong with building goodwill with the peons, after all. And should any of the grimier sort decide to try and rub him out, they'd find that his hover chair (the man's legs had been injured irreparably some years before) had a shield generator and a built-in blaster.

He knew who was who fairly well, which is why he noticed when the newcomer arrived. They wore the armor of a fellow named Bouush, he saw, but there was obviously a woman under it… and a rather well put-together one if he did say so himself. And who did she drag behind her but Koyomi Mizuhara, manacled and showing that she had the sullen, defeated glare of prisoners the galaxy over down to a science?

"Aiy! Who let you--?" the door guard was blaster-whipped to the ground.

Hmm… there were several ways to handle this situation. Mako Spince threw out a hand, forestalling his other guards from attacking. "(I'll handle this,)" he called, and fearlessly rolled forth to address the interloper. "(What can I do for you, Miss?)"

"Oh… um…" the woman obviously wasn't up on her Alderanian Trade. "I… (Bounty on her. Is it good?)"

"(I actually didn't have one on Koyomi, here. But you know, she was a thorn in my side too, so perhaps we can work something out.)"

"(I'd like. Um… that. I would, yes.)"

"(It seems your Alderanian Trade isn't what it should be.)"

"(Sorry.)"

"(Don't worry about it. So do you mind telling me how you came by Bouush's armor?)"

"(I killed him… er… and I took it from him.)"

"(How about that. I'm not sure whether I should congratulate you or feed you to the Rancor.)"

"The RANCOR!" a lizard-monkey shrieked from his shoulder. "Ah Ha HA HA Ha Ha!"

"(There it is again!)" Mako cried, pointing after the irritating creature as it jumped from his shoulder and scampered across the top of some shelves. A dozen blasters rose to the occasion, but only one actually spoke. _BLAOW!_ Little bits of monkey lizard ended up in a dozen drinks, but nobody noticed amid the roar of laughter and the following round of congratulatory toasts.

The stranger whirled her blaster on her finger and holstered it.

"(You're my kind of murdering scum!)" Mako commended. "(Why don't you take our friend to the holding cells, and we'll talk about payment later.)"

She groped for a reply for a few seconds, then settled for a thumbs up and an enthusiastic, "Yayy!" Oh, well. It took all kinds.

* * *

_Drip… drip… drip… drip…_

Yomi leaned against the bars of her cell and casually stuck a hand between them, moving her arm up and down experimentally. "Yep." She quickly moved her hands through the cargo pockets that festooned her tan pants- these shockingly unprofessional guards assumed the bounty hunter had already searched her and just didn't bother. Everything was there. "Good."

_Drip… drip… drip… drip…_

She sat down and threaded her hands behind her head. There was nothing to do now but wait… and hopefully not imagine all the terrible fates a man like Mako Spince would have for her. _Don't get scared now!_ Yomi had set this task for herself, and damned if she wasn't going to see it through!

Still, she kind of hoped Mako wouldn't get around to dealing with her that day.

"Doesn't it get to you, lady?"

Yomi glanced over and saw that the fellow in the cell across from her was leaning through his bars to talk to her. "What?"

"That damn dripping! I've been trying to figure out where it's coming from for weeks!"

"Oh, I'd forgotten about it."

"Already? Jeez, lady, you must have a lot of practice tuning out annoying noises."

"You have no idea."

"Feel sorry for ya, though…"

Yomi sat up. "Why?"

"Spince there doesn't get a lot of pretty ladies through here. Likes to have fun with 'em, you know? He'll probably stick you in this gold-plated bikini and chain you to his hoverchair until he gets bored and feeds you to the Rancor."

"I'd strangle him with that damn chain," she growled.

The man put his hands in the air, still leaning through his bars. "Just a prediction. You'd probably be too skinny in a bikini anyway."

"Too _skinny?_" Yomi asked, looking down at herself in disbelief.

"Well, I mean, you're not exactly a Valerian there, if you know what I mean." Yomi's lip twitched. "I don't know if you'd be to his taste. Stand up, why dontcha?" With a mental shrug, she complied. "Hmm… I'm still not sure. Maybe if you took of your shirt…?"

"Tell you what," Yomi said sweetly, lacing her fingers through the bars. "Why don't you stick your head out a little farther and I will?" He leaned forward eagerly. "DOUBLE CHOP!!"

When the guard came, she said he'd hit his head on the ceiling trying to escape.

* * *

_All right!_ Kagura thought to herself happily. _Phase I of 'Operation Moron Rescue' is complete!_ She'd been careful to vanish into the general throng instead of returning to talk to Mako. Since he had Yomi, he probably wouldn't go to too great an effort to find "Bouush" in the hopes that he could get off without paying her.

It didn't take her long to find the block of carbonite, either. If you were victorious over an adversary as annoying as Captain Takino, wouldn't you want to put her on display? Thankfully, her form was fully concealed beneath the block's smooth surface. A set of sensor goggles were chained to a peg next to it in case anyone wanted a look at the infamous smuggler… Kagura had considered, but the thought honestly turned her stomach.

As the soldier contemplated her next move, she noticed a small cloaked figure retreating away from her down the hall. It turned the corner and vanished; all she saw of it was a snatch of orange hair. _Wait a second! Chiyo-chan's not supposed to be here yet!_

She ran after it, but the figure was gone. Worried now, she returned to the common room… and made it just in time for the show.

Was Chiyo nervous? It would have been better to ask if the twin suns overhead were a little bright. She advanced towards the fortress's mighty doors, jacket billowing in the wind but failing to make her feel any bigger. Kagura's wooden sword was across her back, but it would be a lie to say she wouldn't have felt better with a lightsaber. The sidearm on her belt made her even more uneasy, if that was possible.

But if all went well, she wouldn't have to use either.

Step one- the door guards. Or "guard" as the case may be; his partner was inside pressing an icepack to his head from the blaster-whipping Kagura had given him. He was perhaps 2 meters tall, heavily built, and at complete ease as he leaned on his rifle and smoked a cigarette.

"Excuse me?" she said.

He didn't react.

"P- ah, pardon me?" she tried again.

"Get lost," he replied in a friendly enough tone. "Don't have time for kids."

This was _not _what Chiyo wanted to hear. "No, listen to me. My friends went in there and I have to see them. Let me through."

"Forget it. Go and play somewhere, you're not getting through this door."

She gestured at him. "Yes, I am."

_Pfft! _He thought to himself as she walked on by, _Stupid little brat thinks she can mind-trick me! I'll show her what… uh… who am I gonna show?_ The guard scratched his head. It was the darndest thing, but for a moment he could have sworn he was talking to someone.

Well, that went well enough. Though she felt a little bad about manipulating people like that… still, it wasn't like she'd hurt him or anything. But then, where did you draw the line on such thing? Before she could consider further, Chiyo stepped around the corner into the common room and all thought was driven from her mind.

As she attuned herself to the Force, Chiyo became more sensitive to other people's thoughts and emotions. It was nothing like the Jedi mind-reading of legend, but she could pick up on things that others would completely miss… but then, what about things that were completely obvious?

The tough, vicious, hard-living aura of that room hit her in the face like a brick wall as she entered, almost driving her away before she could control herself. Chiyo stood in the entryway unnoticed, scanning the milling thugs for a familiar suit of armor. _Shoot! Where's Ms. Kagura? Hasn't she found Ms. Tomo yet?_

At the center of the cavernous hall, a band started playing. She turned at the sound, suddenly face to face with the other door guard, still clutching the icepack to his face. "Aah!"

"Aiy! Who let you-?" he managed before the panicked girl drubbed him with the wooden sword and he dropped like a sack of bricks. As if somebody had flicked a magic switch, everybody in the whole room stopped what they were doing and stared at her. Even the band lowered their instruments.

People getting beaten up was hardly a new occurrence here, but it wasn't often that Mako's guards that were on the receiving end. Twice in one day? _That_ was a record. Chiyo quickly stuck the sword in her belt and put her hands out non-threateningly. "Um…" she said, giggling nervously. "H-hello…"

Mako Spince pulled on his goatee, mind working rapidly. Short, orange-red hair in pigtails, fair complexion… and was that a rebel insignia on her arm? And what kind of child would walk into a place like this, anyway? There was only one explanation… "(Don't do anything, guys, this could be fun,)" he said to the men about him, then addressed her. "Shove off, child! We don't serve milk and cookies here."

"I am _not _a child," she replied, suddenly growing a little backbone. My, but these young folks were predictable. The criminals all shared a good laugh, sitting back to let their boss resolve this situation. Most had a pretty good idea of where this was going. "I'm here for Captain Takino, please?"

"Huh. (Can you believe this? She wants me to give up Takino!)"

The girl called back. "(We can speak Alderanian Trade, if you like!)"

"Basic's fine. Come down here, where I can see you."

Watching in every direction, Chiyo moved carefully down towards Spince. The men parted around her politely enough; none that she could sense were even considering moving against her. Their amusement disturbed her a little, but then, she had to admit that a 13-year-old girl trying to face down a dreaded crimelord was a little funny.

As her feet clanked across a grating, Spince suddenly said, "Ah! So it _is _you… Chiyo Mihama. You have no idea how convenient it is that you stopped by. Did you know that Darth Nochichi put out a two-hundred-and-thirty-million credit bounty on your head?"

"_What?_" That was more credits than would ever pass through Chiyo's hands in her whole life, or indeed, the lives of most anybody in that room. There was a bit of shifting and muttering, but fortunately, nobody got the bright idea to try and collect on it.

"Isn't it great how you're always the last one to learn about these things? You know, I don't think I'm going to give you Takino. And really, 230 mil isn't a whole lot to an organization like mine, so I can afford not to turn you in. What would you say if I were to completely blow you off?"

"I'd say that that could be a mistake," Chiyo reached for the wooden sword, forgetting for a moment that it wouldn't block blasters.

"That's too bad," Mako said casually, and hit a button on the arm of his chair. The grating opened beneath Chiyo's feet and she dropped like a rock into the pit of the Rancor, that dreadful monster imported from a far off world to deal with unwanted visitors and incompetent employees!

(Yes, the exclamation point is necessary. Stop kidding yourself.)

An appreciative roar rose from the spectators. Nobody noticed "Bouush" in the back putting a hand over her visor.

There followed an expectant silence, but no screams came from the chamber below, no clatter of massive claws on stone or rending of flesh. Mako hummed up to the edge of the pit and peered down. "What's going on down there?"

"It… it, ah… doesn't want to eat me!" Chiyo called up.

"What?" The crimelord squinted into the dimness below, but he couldn't make anything out. "What do you mean, it doesn't want to eat you?"

"It seems to… um, like me."

He considered that. Fair enough; _he _had almost felt bad dropping her down there. A sort of built-in sense that such amazingly cute things shouldn't be rent into tiny pieces and eaten, he supposed, though it was surprising that the Rancor had such sensibilities. "Fine then. Get outta there and we'll talk."

He pressed another control, and in the pit, a small door opened for Chiyo to leave. She gave the Rancor one last pat on the nose and entered the narrow corridor beyond… where her danger sense went off just as the door slammed behind her. Oh, the men had laughed when Mako installed his Jedi Trap.

He was glad it was paying off now- artificial gravity generators were expensive.

Chiyo tried to step forward, but the floor suddenly became the ceiling and she fell. Then one of the walls became the floor. She tried to move along that wall before the opposite wall finally got its turn. When Mako finally bored of his game of Jedi squash, ports in the walls opened and a mild narcotic gas seeped into the hall.

So failed Plan A. The insensate Jedi was slung over a tough's shoulder and tossed into a cell, happily humming 'Time Pavement.' It seemed that Mako was stuck on the idea of feeding her to _something_, and it happened that there was a creature in the desert that was much less of a picky eater…

Yomi saw this development from her own cell and steeled herself. Come nightfall, her turn would be up.

* * *

Most of Spince's employees had gone home or turned in by the time Yomi made her move. With grace and stealth that would have had her Valerian brethren staring openmouthed, she picked the lock of her cell and left a trail of unsuspecting or unconscious guards towards where Kagura had found the carbonite block.

She too ignored the sensor goggles, instead examining the controls beneath their pegs. It was the standard setup for a carbonite cell for a living creature… in four seconds she had started it "defrosting."

Almost instantly, the block had vanished and Tomo was pitching limply out of its frame. Catching her was an unpleasant shock; she was as cold as death, smelling faintly of clay, dry, but her hair and clothes were matted down. And worst of all, she had no pulse.

"Tomo! Tomo, wake up!" Yomi shook her, starting to panic. "Hey! Stupid!"

Suddenly, her friend drew a great, shuddering breath, eyes fluttering. Tomo began coughing ferociously on Tatooine's baking, dusty air. "S…so hot!" she gasped, "Did I die? Am I in Hell?"

"Of course not!" Yomi snapped, so relieved she almost felt like crying.

"Yomi! But if you're here, this must be Hell!"

"You idiot! And quiet down, they'll hear you."

Tomo was still shaking, but that was to be expected after a physical trauma like carbonite freezing. Yomi put her arms around her. "Moron! I don't need to be held!" Tomo gritted, even as she clutched Yomi back. "Wh… but why…? Oh, my God! I… I can't see! Yomi, what…?"

"Shh… it's normal. It'll come back, don't worry."

"But _Yomi…_!" she whined childishly.

"Don't worry, Tomo… You'll be fine. I'll protect you." Yomi started to help her friend up, but came to a halt when she felt the mouth of a blaster against the back of her head. "How sweet," Ohyama sneered.


	27. Excessive Violence

(A/N: For some reason, I imagine Sean Thornton doing Ohyama's English voice.)

**27: Excessive Violence**

A humid wind blew through the canopies of Thyferra's capital, stirring willowy limbs and making the narrower bridges sway. This was the only movement the city saw, as its citizens didn't go out much anymore.

Though the breeze was warm, Baron Kasuga still shivered. He walked swiftly through the network of bridges, surrounded by a quartet of stormtroopers that were supposed to make him feel safe despite of the fact that they were entirely useless. It was the same damn sprint every single day to get to his offices; he'd have started to work from home if it wouldn't be seen as a sign of weakness.

It had _almost _become routine. He had nearly managed to get rid of the sickening feeling that maybe _this _would be the day… "Sorry, I was distracted," he said quietly, giving his communicator a little shake. "Yes, of course I'll contribute to Osaka's reconstruction. And let me tell you, when I find out who murdered my niece…"

The Baron was interrupted by a simply indescribable sound. It was a Vratix Rebel's claws punching through a stormtrooper's armor and telescoping the poor sod into the ground. Black streaks fell all around him, their falls punctuated by similarly horrifying crunches and pops.

His hand fell to his blaster, but it was already too late.

* * *

Empress Yukari was concerned. It wasn't an emotion she was used to, and it made her a tad waspish—more so than usual, in any case. She'd been sitting for nearly an hour staring at a map of the Endor system, brow furrowed, chewing on a thumbnail anxiously.

"**You're not normally like this**," Nochichi observed, fading out of nowhere behind her.

"Nyamo," the Empress growled, as if that should explain everything. She started panning the map about, searching for something she couldn't identify. "This whole thing is just another wager between us… and that lousy cheater would never make a wager with me unless she was sure of winning. She's got something up her sleeve, I _know _it!"

"**What happened to your confidence?**"

"Oh, I'm sure I'll come out on top!" Yukari affirmed, though she sounded as if she was trying to convince herself. Affecting a deep, official voice, she said, "I have forseen it."

"**Forseen it, eh? You, who rarely thinks more than twenty minutes ahead?**"

"You're on thin ice, buddy!"

The Sith Lord turned purple with amusement and vanished.

* * *

"Oh, great rescue," Tomo lambasted. "I knew I could count on you guys."

"Oh, shut up," Yomi groaned. The four conspirators now shared the cell she had spent all of yesterday in, manacled securely to the wall (with the exception of Chiyo) and awaiting the judgment of the crimelord. The Valerian nodded at their Jedi, who was sprawled on the floor, looking around as if she'd never seen any of them before. "Do you think she's going to recover?"

"Doubt it," Kagura replied sadly. "Remember the party after the _Implacable _battle? One glass of champagne and she was done all night."

"Damn."

"I've got it!" Chiyo surged unsteadily to her feet. "I's gotta plan."

"Here we go," Yomi sighed.

"No, no, no, I hitta home run 'th this 'un!" the prodigy said thickly, holding her arms out to keep her balance. "Okay, get this… _Jawas_, yo! I call 'em up, an' they ram the door down in their sandcrawler, an'…"

"Do you even know their language?" Yomi asked tiredly.

"Shh! Shh! You're messin' with my _brain_wave!" Chiyo waved her hands in the other's face to emphasize her point, "I call 'em up, an' then… uh… what was I talking about?" After a moment of puzzled consideration, she collapsed once more.

"At least she's not paranoid," Kagura offered.

To be fair, Chiyo had planned against such an assault… but it hadn't occurred to her how difficult it would be to perform on her patented poison diffusing technique while in a narcotic stupor. Straining with every ounce of her will, she managed to focus her mind on the matter at hand for a precious few seconds. "Di' they… search Ms. Tomo?"

"Uh, no…"

"They wouldn't dare!" Tomo crowed.

"What would be on her, anyway?" Yomi asked.

"No, Ghost Jawas!" the Jedi suddenly cried, "Tha's _it!_ They're like Jawas'n stuff… but… uh… they're all dead." Everybody stared at her. "'N stuff…" And then, muttering something about pearls and swine, she finally passed out.

* * *

While drifting in oblivion, she witnessed a few disturbing things. Chiyo saw herself wandering through a burning forest, dazed and caked in blood. She saw the caped girl smile and hold her hand out to Tomo and Kagura, who responded by drawing their blasters and mowing her down. As the woman fell, her smile became rueful.

Then a strange, fish-headed man appeared before her. "Greetings, Chiyo! I am Admiral Ackbar, your spirit guide!"

She stared at him. "What are you the Admiral of?"

He blinked. "That's easy. I'm the admiral of… uh… the Spirit Fleet! Yeah! I'm just here to tell you that the new stuff they shot you with is kicking in, so none of the dreams you'll be having will be indicative of anything, be it your own mental state or that of the universe at large."

"Oh. Uh… thanks."

"No problem. Aargh! My head turned into a chicken!" And so it began…

* * *

"Beautiful day for a trip, eh, Ms. Mizuhara?" Mako said serenely, leaning back in his chair. Above their heads, great triangular sails bulged in the vicious winds that cut across the Dune Sea. They were mostly for show, of course; the sail-barge slid through the air under its own power, twenty meters above the golden sand.

It was a gorgeous vehicle, nothing like those that manned it, all sleek lines and shining armor and thrumming power. The two skiffs that escorted it, however, were more utilitarian. One carried Chiyo and six guards, the other held Tomo, Kagura and five more.

Poor Yomi, however, was stuck with their "host." Spince had attempted the gold-bikini and chains bit, but after about four concussions his lackeys gave up. And in retrospect, he recognized that having a chain between them would have been a very bad thing for his health. "Where are we going?"

"The Pit of Carkoon," the crimelord answered happily, reaching for a glass of wine. "It's the home of a creature called the Sarlacc. Ever heard of it?" He paused for her to answer, but she only stared at him, sunlight blazing off of her glasses. "Oh, it's a very interesting beast. Rather like an anemone, have you heard of those?"

Yomi tried her restraints again. Chains were about her wrists, attaching her rather painfully to the rail along one side of the barge's poop deck where she'd have a perfect view of the execution.

"It seems you're not as charming as you think you are," Ohyama commented. The bounty hunter leaned on the rail across from Yomi, turning his face to the wind casually. He was probably the only person on Tatooine who could get away with saying something like that to Spince.

"Hmm, I guess not." Mako took a sip of his drink. "Would you like some of the wine, either of you? It's really very good."

"Sure," Yomi suggested through gritted teeth, "Why don't you unchain me so I can have a glass?"

"Don't think I'm not considering it. But I'm not sure my men would enjoy reigning you in again. You know, that's what this excursion is for, Ms. Mizuhara; the enjoyment of my employees."

"Is that so?"

"I always wondered how you kept them in line," Ohyama said. "It's not like you can offer them a whole lot of money…"

Mako grinned, but it didn't take a Jedi to see that his good humor was fraying. "It's one of my management secrets. There isn't much this scum enjoys more than a good execution. They love seeing blood without risking themselves… but really, you could say that of most people, now that I think on it."

The bounty hunter shook his head. "It's sad, isn't it, Spince?"

"_Mister _Spince, thank you."

"Very well, then… _Mister _Spince."

"Oh, look ahead, Ms. Mizuhara, we're almost there!"

She did, and her heart sank. The Pit of Carkoon was a great, perfectly round hole in the otherwise pristine desert, entirely filled by the Sarlacc's gaping maw. It stood eternally open and waiting for unsuspecting creatures to wander near, where they'd be captured by ropy tentacles bursting from the sand and cast to their doom, trapped by downward-swept fangs to be digested for hours…

Planks extended from the sides of the two skiffs.

"Barbarous!" Yomi spat. "You enjoy this as much as they do, don't you?"

"I'd be lying if I said I didn't like the production a little…" Spince hummed up next to her, making her flinch with his proximity. "If you think _I'm_ an animal, you should be watching the commoners down there."

Sure enough, all of Spince's employees that could find posts on the barge or pay for the show were clustered against the rail beneath them, watching avidly. A few tried to start chants, but thankfully the crowd was too disorganized to get anything going.

"They really are a rabble," Ohyama sighed, looking the crowd over. "You deserve better, Mr. Spince."

"Interested in a permanent job?"

"I might be."

Yomi tuned them out as Chiyo's skiff passed over the pit and drifted to a halt. Yomi could see one of the men push the girl towards the plank, noting that they'd let her keep the wooden sword across her back, most likely as a joke. ("Oh, look out! She'll take out your knees!") She shuffled towards the end, barely able to walk a straight line down its length.

"Looks like she's having trouble," Spince commented.

"I hope you like surprises," Yomi replied angrily. She didn't actually know that Plan B would go off, but she was mad.

"Oh, I love surprises. They're… refreshing."

"They can be," she conceded, pulling the thin chains tight around her wrists. It was just possible… as she tensed her arms, Yomi saw something odd. The skiff was just close enough that she could make out individuals on its tiny deck, and it seemed that Chiyo's breath was misting pink. What in the world could _that_ mean?

On the plank, Chiyo's mind was slowly clearing. The more of the narcotic she cleaned away, the easier it was to focus and expel more. The guards didn't seem to notice, though one of them wobbled a little when he passed through a cloud of her breath.

"How about it?" Spince called from the distant barge. "Want to try begging for your life? It won't get you far, but it makes the show more fun!"

Chiyo cleared her throat, shook her head rapidly, and yelled back incredulously. "You expect me to _beg_?"

"No, Ms. Mihama, I expect you to fall into that pit where you'll die an excruciating death over the course of several hours!" Spince frowned and scratched at his goatee. That didn't quite have the ring to it he was looking for.

"She doesn't _sound_ very stoned," Ohyama said quietly.

"Makes her death less merciful," Mako replied, shrugging. "An interesting trick, though. I wonder how she did it."

"I don't expect we'll find out now."

The guard gave Chiyo a push and she was suddenly plummeting. For an instant, panic flooded her and she froze, an unreleased scream pressing into the back of her throat and adrenaline surging through her small body. For an instant, death was certain.

But then she turned calmly in the air and caught the edge of the plank. As her weight bent it slightly, she cast an arm towards Tomo. The Honorable Captain cried out in surprise as something yanked itself from one of her deep pockets and shot glittering through the air to Chiyo's waiting hand.

"…the hell?" Spince gaped.

Chiyo vaulted back into the middle of skiff, right over the guard's befuddled head, and drew the wooden sword. Unfortunately, one of them was a little quicker on the uptake than the others and snapped off a shot at her as soon as she landed.

Without thinking, Chiyo caught the bolt on her _bokken_ and it burst apart into burning splinters. Everybody on the skiff stopped in shock, the guards from seeing her block a blaster shot, Chiyo from losing her weapon. She stared at the flaming wreck for a few seconds, her expression at first dismayed, then resigned, then finally settling into one that was eerie and completely unreadable. "You'll wish I had that in a moment," she advised softly.

The guards flinched back, momentarily assailed by the feeling that the young woman before them was somehow _green_, though they couldn't say why. A lightsaber sprang to life in her hand, straight and amethyst. It was Sakaki's old off-hand lightsaber, the perfect length for her.

"Damn, you had that this whole time?" Kagura yelped.

"Had what? What's going on?" Tomo asked frantically.

The men on their skiff were so transfixed by Chiyo's confrontation that one of their number didn't even notice as Kagura drew his blaster for him and set his corpse tumbling into the Sarlacc.

"Oh, bloody hell. We've never had an execution like _this_ before," Mako gripped the arms of his hoverchair uncertainly.

"Aren't you refreshed?" Ohyama asked. "I am. Looks like the lady is, too."

The crimelord cast an aggravated glance at him, then hit the intercom. "Engine room, put some distance between us! Run out the guns!"

"Waugh! I'm defenseless!" Tomo tried to blunder away from danger, but she had no idea where it was on the skiff. More to keep her from falling off than anything else, Kagura thrust a lead pipe into her hands—realizing only in retrospect that she'd armed a blind Tomo. _What have I done?_ The soldier threw herself to the deck to avoid the whirling steel.

"Wheee!" Tomo shrieked, "Let's go!"

Even in her few years as a Rebel, Kagura had never before seen pure gumption and enthusiasm win a fight. It was a heartening experience to watch the thugs desperately and futilely trying to evade Tomo's wrath on a deck the size of a station-wagon.

The last guard on Chiyo's skiff cowered away from her as she turned and contemplated the sail barge, ignoring him. Finally screwing up his courage, the man fired a shot at her—which she caught on her artificial hand without turning. Wringing her hand absently, she turned and cast a completely unconcerned glance back at him, but he had already bailed out over the rail.

"How about that?" Yomi smiled at the crimelord fiercely. "You have a backup plan now?"

"I always do," Mako replied, nodding to Ohyama. The bounty-hunter smirked, pushed his glasses up on his nose, and jetted out over the Pit of Carkoon to the cheers of the rabble.

The crimelord laughed, rubbing his hands in anticipation of the show, but was interrupted by the most un-refreshing surprise of all: the sickening _flinkt!_ of Yomi's chains finally giving. "Holy-! You really _are_ a Valeri-urghk!"

Chiyo skittered back across the deck of her skiff, expertly warding Ohyama's stuttering three-round bursts. The bounty hunter twisted in the air as he approached, keeping one blaster braying at her while he went for something on a holster about his calf. This he flung sideways at her, and when her lightsaber intercepted it—

_BOOM!_

Chiyo jerked back with a squeal of pain, lightsaber falling from her grasp and clattering against the edge of a scupper. Before she could recover, one of Ohyama's patented bolas whirled about her thighs and brought her crashing to the deck. He landed on the skiff's prow and raised his blaster towards her with a cold smirk.

Meanwhile, Kagura was having a situation of her own. "Tomo! Idiot!" She ducked another swing. "They're all down! You're not fighting anyone!" The blind woman wound to a stop and turned in her general direction. "What? Already?"

"Yeah! I've been yelling at you for two minutes!"

"Well that sucks," Tomo moped, carelessly throwing the lead pipe away.

"Good night, Ms. Mihama," Ohyama leered. But just as he pulled the trigger, the lead pipe came spiraling out of nowhere and buried itself a quarter-inch into his jetpack. He only had time to go "Uh?" before the jets roared to life and he was sent screaming skyward. "WAAAUGH!"

Watching the bounty hunter pinwheel through the air, the sail-barge's gunnery chief barked, "Draw a bead on those skiffs, swabs! Blow them out of the air before they get here!"

"Boss? We have a situation."

He turned and saw that one of the guns had been pulled from its moorings and turned so that it faced down the line of cannons. A towering man sat atop it, grinning merrily and holding a pair of heavy blasters on them. "Hey, guys!" Yuichi greeted.

The barge's deck had been in absolute chaos, but all at once it fell silent. All of the crewmen and thugs stared at Chiyo as she stood straight and (almost) tall on the rail, jacket flapping in the wind and lightsaber humming angrily. Remember when it was admitted that no force in the galaxy could have made her imposing?

Forget that.

The young Jedi looked the crowd of them up and down and then, satisfied with what she saw, extinguished the saber and clipped it to her belt. Chiyo hopped down from the rail and walked casually into their midst. They parted for her easily--towards the poop deck she strode, and not a hand was raised against her.

"Well?" Spince howled, his voice slightly strained. One of his hands was against his neck, holding off the bundle of chains Yomi had wrapped about his throat. She stood with a foot to the back of his hoverchair, using it as cover against his assembled minions. "Get her! You spineless-" the chain tightened, "Urrgh!"

"You realize I could take your head right off with this," Yomi said conversationally. "Be reasonable."

"Reasonable…" he growled. "Shhh… shoot her!"

One guy listened that time. He was standing behind Chiyo with visions of 230 million credits dancing in his head. At the shouted command, he drew his blaster and fired a shot squarely at the back of her head—and was thrown to the deck, clutching at his chest where the bolt actually ended up.

Chiyo extinguished her lightsaber once more and addressed Mako. "Mr. Spince…"

"I _don't _want to hear it," he growled. "I don't negotiate with terrorists! Especially ones that shouldn't be out of primary school!" Yomi would have tightened the chains again, but she was honestly wondering why he wasn't blacking out.

The Jedi spread her hands. "Mr. Spince, please! All we want is our friend back. Nobody else has to get hurt! Please call your men off and let us go!"

Mako sat there, staring at her venomously for a full minute, before he finally reached into his armrest and tossed her the keys to one of the skiffs.

"Thank you, Mr. Spince!" she called, glowing with relief.

The crimelord hung his head, secretly smiling. Plans A, B and C had all failed, but he wasn't _quite _done yet.

As Chiyo left, she knelt next to the unfortunate man and sadly closed his eyes. "What are you doing?" Mako asked. She stood slowly and turned back to him before answering. "I don't like hurting people," she said matter-of-factly.

The skiff went off one way and the barge another, leaving the Pit of Carkoon alone in the empty desert. Well, almost. "What are we gonna do now?" the fallen guard whined, watching them go.

"Don't talk to me!" Ohyama snarled.

* * *

As the day reached double-noon, Mos Eisley came into sight. Chiyo stood on the skiff's prow, alone with her thoughts as was usual now. Yomi sat in the very back, occasionally casting faintly annoyed looks at Tomo, who'd fallen asleep on her shoulder shortly after coming aboard.

"Well, that was fun," Kagura said to the air.

"I'm getting too old for this shit," Yuichi said in much the same tone.

The soldier looked up at the prow and seemed faintly troubled, but slapped on a smile before speaking. "What are you gonna do now, Chiyo-chan? Gonna keep the lightsaber?"

She shook her head slightly without turning. "It wouldn't be right. I guess I'll use it to figure out how to build my own."

"Isn't the technique lost?"

Chiyo shrugged. "I'll figure it out. Oh, and we should all bail out."

"What?"

Her voice was as calm as ever. "I just realized that there's a bomb on the skiff that will go off in eighty seconds."

So failed Plan D.

* * *

Nobody on the barge noticed a cloaked, orange-haired figure that sat atop one of its mighty sails. Unbothered by the howling wind, scouring grit and blistering heat, he produced a communicator and spoke softly into it. "Figure moves. Skill level and capabilities are as expected. I've found Mihama… Darth Mito."


	28. Strange Day

**28: Strange Day**

"Hold on… you want us to _slow down?_"

"Absolutely right." Grand Moff Kimura looked up through his office's massive skylight. He could see the leading edge of the station's outer shell now--just a week before his view of the stars was un-encroached. "Your men are working admirably, but in this case, speed is not the object."

"But… sir…!" the poor man sputtered. He was a civilian contractor, and still unused to dealing with bigwigs of any type. This government job was his big break; he couldn't afford to screw it up. "We'll be vulnerable until the shell is finished!"

"That's the point. Advanced tactics, my boy, don't worry yourself with it."

"Well, if you, if you say so, sir."

"By the way… tell your female employees to wear their coveralls with one of the straps undone. I hear that it's good luck."

"Sure. What should the guys do?"

The noble stared at him for a long, crackling moment. "Why are you bothering me with such trifles? Get to work!"

"Y-yes, sir!" the contractor scuttled away.

* * *

"Oh, do you smell that?" Tomo asked exuberantly. "Nerf Bread! You love Nerf Bread, don't you, Yomi?" She rushed about a yard to her right, pushing a few Jawas rudely aside before she was yanked back by her partner, who'd been leading her by the hand through Mos Eisley's crowded streets.

"Quit running around," Yomi said severely. "If you're going to plow into things, at least wait until you can see!"

"Let's go get some of that Nerf Bread, c'mon!"

Yomi sighed.

"Might as well," Kagura said. "She oughta be really hungry now… and you, too, now that I think of it. When was the last time you had a good meal?"

"Hmph."

"C'mon, Yomi!" Tomo towed her right through a Boy Scout troop to the vendor, whose tableload of rolls was covered in dust, but then, on Tatooine even the dust has dust on it. "Two of these and three of these and I want one of those," she yelled cheerfully, pointing pretty much at random.

In spite of herself, Yomi enjoyed her friend's good spirits. "Hold on," she said with a laugh in her voice, "Er, don't listen to her. I'll take…" she looked around. "Huh. They don't have Nerf rolls."

"What?" Tomo stood straight. "Your eyes deceive you! That's Grade A Nerf meat I smell!"

"Well, six Bantha rolls. And, uh… dust them off, please?"

"Sure thing, lady."

"Why does everyone call you laaaaady? I wish people would call _me _lady!" Tomo whined, hanging off Yomi's shoulder. "Or at least Miss!"

"Then why don't you try acting like one?" Yomi grumbled happily. "Idiot."

"Lady! Laaaady!"

"Shut up!" As Kagura started laughing, the Valerian rounded on her as well. "And you shut up, too!"

The three friends took to a handy bench (in Mos Eisley, "handy" meant "grungy and never used"); they were hardly seated before Tomo started devouring hers. "Yeah! This is definitely 100 Nerf!"

"But it's a Bantha Roll…"

"So," Kagura took a measured bite, grimaced and set hers down. "Do you think it's the end of Spince's little empire, there?"

"Well, he's not getting any of _those _guys back."

"Yeah! We kicked his ass!"

Kagura smiled nastily. "And he'll really get nailed when the eco-terrorists Mr. Sakaki called come to take the Rancor back to its natural habitat."

"Harsh!" Tomo chirped, grabbing her third roll.

"Hey! That's mine, you little…" before Yomi even finished the sentence, the smaller woman had already mostly wolfed it down. "Was it good?" she asked, her tone acidic.

When Tomo smiled brightly and nodded, though, she found it hard to stay angry.

* * *

Sakaki's old house had not yet been reclaimed by the desert. It looked exactly as Chiyo remembered it; the speeder bike on its wall hadn't even been stolen by Jawas yet. She sat cross-legged in the middle of the floor, surrounded by an array of small metallic parts, but ignoring them for now.

The prodigy's eyes were closed in concentration. If there was any place, any place in the _whole galaxy_ that she would return to…

"She won't come, you know." Chiyo gave a massive start and turned. Yuichi leaned on the doorframe, looking about the small home with something akin to nostalgia, if you can really have nostalgia for something you've never seen before. "Heh! You're so much like your father… right down to that 'stunned-bunny' look you get when something surprises you."

"Er… stunned bunny?"

"Well, I'm exaggerating a little. And yet there's a bit of your mother around your eyes; you might have a growth spurt in your future. She was pretty tall… and quite the looker, too." He whistled rudely. "Yow!"

Chiyo just stared at him.

"And that's _exactly _the look Yasuhiro would give me, too!" Yuichi chuckled. "You're too funny, Chiyo-chan."

"But what did you mean about her not coming?"

"Oh…" Yuichi moved into the house and sat on a chair, taking an old stuffed cat up fondly. His voice was so different now that he didn't sound like the same man. "It was one of Nanashi's quirks. She was like a great big cat, you know? She'd never come when you called her… but she always managed to be there when you needed her."

"Mm."

"I remember giving her this…" he said, placing the stuffed toy reverently on its chair. "Huh. I've gone and opened up, now." For a time there was silence.

"So… where are you off to now?"

"I don't know," he shrugged. "I'm done with this getting-shot-at shit, though."

"Not going to join the Rebellion?"

"I don't play well with others."

"What about Marco?"

"Ah, we get along because he's the same as I am. Old, ugly, mangy and antisocial… you know, Chiyo-chan, I can see how knotted up you're getting. You should go out and get a cat before you end up like me. It'd smooth you out a little." He stood, stretched, and started out the door. "You sure you don't need the speeder bike?"

"They're coming to pick me up at sunset."

He walked outside without another word and pulled the light-framed vehicle off of the wall. As he started struggling with its ignition (it was only natural that the bike would be disagreeable after so long in the elements), Chiyo came out after him and watched.

"Will I ever see you again?" she asked.

"Not if I'm lucky," Yuichi replied, in such a tone as she knew it was nothing personal. He mounted the humming vehicle and gave it an experimental rev.

"Goodbye!" Chiyo called.

The father of Sakaki threw a casual wave over his shoulder and roared off towards the horizon. In less than a minute, he nothing but swiftly vanishing a speck in the rippling distance. She stood looking after him for a few minutes longer, then glanced at the sky, wondering why it was still double-noon.

Ah, yes. Retrograde, the longest day of Tatooine's year. Her friends would probably be _miserable_ for the heat!

Chiyo walked back into the house and sat again. In taking Sakaki's saber apart, she'd intuited most of its workings; after a few small experiments, she had lightsaber theory down pretty well. She picked up the green gem that she was planning to use for her own and held it to the light. It was perfect in size and shape…

But then, looking at the pale purple stone that had focused Sakaki's weapon, an idea came to her. She took it up and turned the two around and around in her palm like tranquility balls, thinking.

* * *

Some hours later Chiyo snapped the final piece into place. One of the final steps to becoming a Jedi (or whatever it was she was becoming) had been completed. But oddly enough, she felt no sense of drama or accomplishment, just a little drained from concentrating on such a long and difficult task.

She held the weapon on high, thumb hovering over the switch, but at the moment, she honestly didn't want to see if she was doomed to another day of intensive work. Instead, Chiyo wandered outside and flopped backwards into the sand, staring into Tatooine's pristine, pale sky.

It was just so… _comfortable_ to be back here! After months out in the bitter cold of space and on worlds not much warmer… (or in the case of Thyferra, an acceptable temperature but with air you had to drink), it was nice to return to the atmosphere of her youth. Odd that she should already think of it like that.

With a pang of sadness, the young prodigy wished to see her Aunt and Uncle again, but she knew that it would never be. Not through official channels did she know, or even through the Force… she just _knew_. Occasionally tears still caught up to her, but never where others could see. What kind of a Jedi cries, after all?

The certainty of their loss gave her a weird sort of peace. All she could do now was try to lead a life that would make them proud.

As waves of comforting heat washed over her in the soft sand, she actually started to drift off— and snapped back to reality to a large, rough tongue rasping over her forehead. Chiyo sat bolt upright and half turned. "Who-?"

A very small Sand Panther sat behind her, staring with calm, droopy eyes. It was probably still a kitten; heck, it wasn't even bigger than _her_. The animal acknowledged her question with a fang-filled yawn and stretched out on the sand she had just been covering.

"Is this your spot?" she asked good-naturedly. Chiyo remembered her old friend's affinity for the panthers. Perhaps this one was a regular visitor? "Well, if you were Ms. Sakaki's friend, we should get to know each other."

The cat suffered to be stroked for a little while, but then his ears pricked up at the distant whine of an approaching speeder-bike. Chiyo stood as her new friend loped away, looking around uncertainly. Out here it was sometimes hard to tell what direction sounds were coming from. Was Yuichi returning…?

_Wait a second! It's not slowing—!_

Chiyo flinched. Something- a blinding purple flash in the corner of her vision- buzzed by just a centimeter from her head. She jerked in surprise as her left pigtail drifted to the ground at her feet. Her assailant's bike was skidding in a tight circle to face her again; all she could see of its rider through the billowing grit was the flickering ends of a light gray cloak.

Before her stunned mind could process more than these few jumbled impressions, the attacker was returning and the shockingly purple blade came streaking down towards her again. Acting without conscious thought, Chiyo _jumped_… and landed awkwardly on the back of the roaring bike.

Now, as any concerned parent will tell you, small, light-framed speeder bikes aren't made for riding tandem. Her weight sent the vehicle slewing sideways, and all at once they were careening right into Sakaki's house.

A few seconds later, Chiyo sat up dazedly, coughing painfully. The small domed house was partially crumbled in and something in there was burning, releasing a column of dark smoke. Where was the attacker? Had it survived the crash?

The wind that howled over the endless dunes answered her question, dispelling the smoke in an instant and revealing a small figure standing atop the house. A light gray cloak fluttered around its slender form over tan boots planted together on the roof's crumbled edge. Concealing its face was a dark gray mask with eerie, blank white eyes.

Chiyo stood staring as the glimmering purple blade was reignited, extending down past its owners feet, and a familiar-looking azure blade ignited in its other hand. The wind picked up with a mournful shriek and the being leapt soundlessly towards her, sabers humming in vicious arcs.

At this point, the young Jedi snapped out of her stupor and wished that she had tested her new lightsaber _before_… the cold cylinder leapt to her hand and her thumb depressed its switch.

_Click._ Except for the whistling wind, silence.

_I'm going to die._

And then emerald green light of the most vibrant and eye-hurting sort blossomed before her and lashed back and forth between the incoming weapons, finally leaping hungrily towards their master. The grey being seemed to slide back from her attack, brushing it aside with a gentle movement of its violet blade.

Chiyo stayed on the attack, refusing to give her foe the chance to regain the initiative. But though her blade moved like emerald lightning, the stranger was always just a step ahead of her, moving with unhurried grace to stop each ferocious strike. It slid and shuffled about so lightly that it didn't seem to touch the ground, and if not for the buzzing impacts of their weapons, she wouldn't have been fully convinced it was even there.

There was no telling how long they fought under the twin suns; neither had any sense of time or the world around them. The universe was a small ring of flashing blades and ragged breath.

The apparition was not infallible; after an eternity of combat, Chiyo's blade sheared through a lightsaber's hilt just above its hand, making the weapon burst into a gritty cloud of blue smoke. The prodigy felt a sharp pang at the destruction of her father's lightsaber, but didn't slow.

Pressing the advantage, she lunged forward and turned a ring around the handle of her lightsaber. Her lime blade was suddenly shot through with pale amethyst and a half-meter longer, snapping out towards that frightening mask faster than any thrust she could have made.

Chiyo's foe leaned back and slid its lightsaber under hers, gasping sharply. Its hood slid off, freeing a thick fall of dark brown hair. A line shot down the length of the mask and it split apart, falling heavily to the sand on either side of those light boots.

What did Chiyo expect to see? A fiercely painted warrior, perhaps. A skull. A bundle of snakes. _Something_ fearsome and evil and Sith-y. Instead, the mysterious figure turned out to be a girl who seemed to be only a few years older than her, gazing emptily with huge, sad brown eyes. "That…" she said faintly, "…was close."

The combatants slowly backed away from each other. Something intangible had changed between them, but what it was neither could say. "You're… you're not what I expected," Chiyo said.

"You aren't what I was imaginin' either…"

"You aren't a Sith, are you?"

"I'm… a baby Sith. In the makin', you could say."

"I've seen you in my dreams."

"An' I, you."

"Really?" Chiyo was curious despite herself. "What was I like?"

"You were dead…" her voice quavered oddly, there was a storm of confused emotions behind her words, the end result sounding just a little scared. "I'd killed ya. It was the greatest moment o'mah life…"

"What did I ever do to you?"

"Nothing." If possible, her expression grew even sadder. "But it's the only way I can be free."

"Free?"

"Y'don't know what it's like… t'have his voice…" she hung her head and Chiyo was struck by the momentary, absurd urge to go to her. But then the young Sith looked back up, her eyes empty, cold and terrifyingly clear.

Their blades collided once more, with such force that motes of green and purple light burst from them and drifted free, swirling in the desert wind. Again and again they crashed together, freeing more and more embers to fly around their duel. Just as it became certain one of them would have to give, though, a golden blur yowled and collided with the Sith, knocking her sprawling and the violet lightsaber spiraling in to the air.

The Sand Panther snarled, tail lashing in the air, teeth flashing as it descended to tear her throat out. Before the beast's dire aim was met, his snarl turned into a yell of pain and he leapt away from her, shuddering all over. He didn't back down from there, though, slinking in a circle about her, an indistinct form like molten bronze in the setting suns.

The Sith-trainee thrust a hand towards him, and _something_ shot towards the Panther, a distortion in the air that stirred the sand beneath its rushing path. As it washed over the animal, his ears flattened to his head and he shuddered again, clearly unwilling to give.

Chiyo took the opening to lunge for her, but the emerald blade encountered only air. She skidded to a halt and looked frantically about; the woman in gray was gone. All that remained was a paper pinwheel stuck into the ground at her feet, whizzing in Tatooine's harsh wind and catching the last of the settling saber embers.

Understandably, it took Chiyo took a little while to get her cool back. She plucked the pinwheel from the ground and held it to the setting sun. "Who in the galaxy was _that_?"

Her thoughts were interrupted by the approaching roar of the _Silver Rose_.

* * *

"Hey, guys," Chiyo greeted, coming aboard. Kagura was sitting in the common room, stretched out on the couch and working on something, absently whirling a pen through her fingers. Upon seeing her, though, the pen slid from the soldier's fingers and clattered on the deck.

"What's the hell is _that _thing? And what happened to your hair?"

"Oh?" Chiyo reached up and scratched the panther's flank. Though he was the size of a largish dog, he rode comfortably on her shoulder. "His name is Maya. Isn't he cute?"

"S…sure…" Kagura met the animal's fierce eyes. "Hi, Maya. I, uh, I think you look pretty tasty, too."

Chiyo flopped into the couch across from her, Maya hopping to the floor by her feet and curling up. She gave a massive, rib-creaking sigh. "What a strange day this turned out to be…."

And on Tatooine, the cloaked figure watched them depart skyward. "Friends with the animal kingdom, too?" she mused. "Guess I'm just no match for a prodigy."

She removed a melon bread roll from her pocket and chewed contemplatively. Dead last again, but good bread could make anything better…


	29. Reign of Weird

**29: Reign of Weird**

Ayumu awoke with a pounding headache. She sat slowly, the heel of her hand pressed to an eye, blinking against the blinding light of twin suns. "Whu..." she managed thickly. "What a _miserable_ planet…"

She swiped at her upper lip, smearing the latest in a string of nosebleeds across her cheek. It felt like she was breathing solid grit, the air was so dry. Though the sand around her bedroll was strewn with empty water bottles, her throat was still parched. Never had Ayumu missed her native Thyferra so ardently.

"**Ayumu.**" The Sithling moaned as her headache grew by about five degrees. "**I want you to come to Coruscant.**" Then, responding to her sudden surge of fear, "**Do not worry, young one. I did not expect you to overcome her in your first encounter--there will be no punishment. I merely wish to present you to the Empress.**"

Oh. Like _that_ was supposed to make her feel better.

* * *

"Waugh! I hate that cat!" Tomo simpered, clutching her bandaged forearm theatrically. Fortunately, she was going for pity, so she kept her voice low. Now, to be fair, Maya _had _pretty much opened her arm and now she had to take medication for the Sand Panther bacteria, but…

"It's your own damn fault," Yomi said tiredly. "Next time, _look _where you're going to sit. And don't try and tell me you still can't see—you _had_ to be aiming those punches!"

"And pretty well, I might add," Tomo agreed proudly, forgetting her agony completely. "Nothing can stop my feared and renowned left hook!"

"To think I missed this crap," her friend sighed, covering her eyes. The general clamor of the _Katana's _"Juice Bar" washed over both of them, reminding her that there would be too many witnesses if she decided to strangle this irritating woman. "Hey, what are you--?"

Tomo was playfully jabbing her side again. "Oh, c'mon, you're not mad, are you? Lighten up!"

"Lighten up? Why don't you _grow_ up?"

"If I grew up," the Honorable Captain said, affecting an air of wisdom, "I might be a better person, but I wouldn't be Tomo Q. Takino. And there's only one of those!"

"Thank God," Yomi said, then blinked. "Wait, what does Q stand for?"

Tomo shrugged.

The Valerian sighed again and sat back. Since they had returned from Chiyo's exploit they hadn't had much to do, and Tomo without something to do was an absolute terror. Unfortunately, she seemed very taken with this whole "Rebellion" thing and enthusiastic to join in with the attack that this Armada was mustering for.

"Just look at it!" she had said, gesturing over the colossal fleet, "What could stand against _this? _What could possibly be cooler than being a part of this?"

Yomi knew that there was some huge, tragic flaw in this whole situation, but for the life of her, she couldn't pin it down. The attack was a bad idea, the Rebellion was bad news, and now was an excellent time to disappear. _Great,_ she thought sourly, _I've figured all that out, now all I have to do is convince Ms. Head-Like-A-Block-Of-Granite over there_.

She looked up and happened to notice Yuka enter, find her way to Wedge and hand him an envelope. "Thank you, Miss," he said gallantly. The powder monkey bowed with a big smile and scampered away.

How far those two had come… When they'd first signed on, Yuka would've been intimidated just being in the same room as a fighter like Wedge. She and Miru had had trouble even as recently as their visit to Thyferra.

_"Yomi, can we ask you something?"_

_She looked up from her textbook, doing her best to keep a pleasant expression in spite of the miserable humidity. The two recruits stood before her, hands clasped submissively. Behind them, Kagura dozed with her feet on the room's desk. "Sure."_

_"Are all of the rebels as mean and tough as Ms. Kagura?" Miru asked seriously._

_Yomi blinked. As mean and…? "Well… I wouldn't say so. Some of the rebels… they put up a front, you know? They act all tough, but they're really nice people that try to look after their friends."_

_"But not me, though," Kagura said absently without opening her eyes._

_Yomi smirked a little and looked sideways past the recruits. "Yes, they pretend like they're total badasses and secretly swoon over Garik Loran."_

_"Hey! Garik Loran is frickin' hot! I mean, uh…" Kagura looked back and forth between Miru and Yuka, who'd turned to stare at her. "But not me, though."_

"Yomi? Hellooooo…"

"Huh?" She shook her head rapidly. "What?"

"Jeez, why are you spacing out so much?" Tomo grabbed a handful of her stomach. "And how the hell did you get so skinny, anyway?"

"We've been over this," she growled, swatting the Corellian's hand away. "Many, many times."

"No, I mean, like, since you guys rescued me."

"You're being stupid."

"You were _worried_, weren't you?" Tomo asked with perverse glee, "You missed me, didn't you? You were _pining!_"

Didn't that infuriating woman realize how important life-debts were to Valerians? Didn't she know that Yomi's angst wouldn't have anything to do with her annoying-as-hell self? Didn't… oh, bother. "Yeah," Yomi said casually. Without pausing to see the effect of her admission, she stood and walked away.

A short time later, Kagura arrived with a tray and sat next to her. "What's up, Tomo? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"I'm just not used to it…" Tomo said softly, staring after the Valerian.

"Used to what?"

"Caring," she massaged her eyes. "Aw, man. I'm gonna need some of that Crimson Ale."

"Oh, yeah… about that…" Kagura started nervously. It fell to Security to break up the resulting slap fight.

* * *

"Well, your… uh, your cat looks healthy," Dr. Ishihara said. "He's a big 'un though, isn't he?"

"Um, yes," Chiyo agreed uncomfortably.

"You know," the good doctor said, pulling on an imaginary beard as he regarded the massive feline. "He almost looks like one o' them Sand Panthers they got back on your homeworld. Those're pretty dangerous."

"Uh…" Chiyo waved a hand in the air. "He's a crossbreed."

Ishihara chuckled. "Of course. A crossbreed." They both knew that she didn't have it in her to actually mind-trick him, but he trusted her ability to keep Maya under control. The only injury so far was that Takino woman, and the urge to claw _her_ face off was fairly natural.

"Good news, Maya," Ishihara said, stroking the cat's cheek. "I'm giving you a clean bill of health! Welcome to the _Katana_."

Maya stared at him as if to say, _keep your hands to yourself._

"He… um, doesn't like to be touched," the Jedi warned.

"Maybe you should get 'im a sign or something. Could you tell the next appointment to come in?"

"Of course. Thank you very much, Doctor." Chiyo bowed low and made her exit, disgruntled panther in tow.

Ishihara drummed his fingers on the edge of the examination table as disinfecting lasers played over it. Seeing young Ms. Mihama again reminded him; when she'd been treated for the radiation burns, he'd taken some blood to make sure they'd be able to supply for transfusions. The test results had been a bit… irregular.

"Who should I tell?" he wondered. "Do _you _even know?"

He wasn't sure how to broach the subject. How _did_ you go about telling someone they weren't even human?

* * *

A tiny figure walked swiftly through a vast, dark room, her stride business-like and angry. She moved to a large stone chair, slapped a few articles down on a table next to it, sat down, cleared her throat, and…

"FIRST SUPPLICANT!"

The lights rose on the Empress's throne-room. Why did the chief executive of an interstellar Empire need something as primitive and pretentious as a throne room? While there was still quite a dispute over its existence, even the throne-room's most ardent detractors had to admit that it was a sight to behold.

Her yell echoed off of the vaulted crystal ceiling to slap against the shining blue stone floor. A wide red carpet led from towering double doors across the room's expanse and up two short flights of steps to the throne's base. 6 meter tall statues stood on either side of the entrance- one was the first Emperor, whose name was lost to history, and the other was Emperor Tanizaki I the Conqueror. Between them, they managed an odd sort of "Good Cop/Bad Cop" effect.

And so the first supplicant entered. It was, of all things, an alien; smallish, gray skinned, with a dangerous, wiry build. As it approached and knelt at the base of the steps, the quartet of Imperial Guardsmen lining the way up gripped their spears.

"I am Kabarkh, clan Khim'bar," he said, "I implore you…"

The Empress tuned him out as he told his sob story about how his homeworld had been poisoned by a crashing starship and his people had to scratch out a living on what little land wasn't covered with this evil grass or something. When he was done, Empress Yukari gave the Magic 8-ball that was her brain a shake and answered.

"Call the Minister of Sciences," she said to an assistant. "Hook this guy up."

The gray alien bowed oddly, spreading his hands. "I thank y—"

"NEXT SUPPLICANT!"

He was led away and Darth Nochichi drifted forth in his place. "**Good day, my Empress,**" he greeted.

"Yo," she replied, bored. "Something wrong?"

"**That wasn't a Noghri, was it?**"

"Could'a been. Why?"

"**Oh, no reason.**" Nochichi started rattling a little in the air, his tone growing increasingly violent. "**I've just been manipulating their people for decades trying to make them think their world was incurable…**"

"Whoa, whoa, are you upset or something?"

"**I'm not upset at all,**" he replied easily, then turned bright red, trembling even harder. "**It was just that the Noghri were the perfect assassins and spies and you took away the _only hold I had on them…!_**" By this time he seemed to be making a sound like a shaking can of soda and the Guardsmen were all but cowering from him.

"Are you, uh, sure you're not upset?"

"**Of course not. The Empress knows best.**"

"Damn right. So what are you here for?"

"**Do you recall my Empress's Hand project?**" By this point, the Sith Lord had totally shed his anger. "**It has finally come to fruition.**"

"Oooh!" Yukari clapped her hands like a little girl. "Show me!"

Nochichi drifted back and disappeared through the double doors. After a few seconds, she heard an irritated, "**You look _fine._ Get in there!**"

And so a small, mousy woman in nondescript light gray clothes entered timidly and started to cross the huge room with hesitant, mincing steps. Nochichi rolled along behind and propelled her forward with invisible shoves. When she _finally_ reached the base of the steps, the girl went to her knees and lowered her head.

Yukari was less than impressed. "Who is this?"

"**The Baroness Ayumu Kasuga, now known as Darth Mito.**"

"Darth… Mito?" Wasn't that a place name?

"**The training would have been much longer, but she had been practicing while I was away. I am very pleased with her progress.**"

"Well, what does she do?"

"**She's useless for telekinesis, and while she can do a pretty good illusion, true mind-tricks are beyond her.**" Yukari's eyes narrowed. "**Her skills are a little more… esoteric.**"

"Doesn't she talk?"

There were a few moments of silence. Finally, Nochichi dipped a little lower and prodded Ayumu with one tapered foot. "I'm… I'm v-very pleased to meet you," she stammered.

Yukari laughed. "Hey, you're a Kasuga, right? I remember now; you guys are from Thyferra! Well, don't be so shy. I won't be mad if you greet me the Thyferran way."

"But that's how we…"

"Greet me…" Yukari said menacingly, "The damn _Thyferran way!_"

"Er… ah heh heh…" Ayumu thought quickly. "You profitin' there?"

"That's better." The Empress sat back and crossed her arms. 'But Nochichi, how do I know if she's any good?"

"**Hmm… Darth Mito.**" The girl turned and looked up at him in trepidation. "**Kill the Empress.**"

"_What?_" Everybody in the room except for Nochichi yelped. Swallowing her objection, Ayumu rose to a crouch and tensed, closing her eyes. The red-cloaked Guardsmen closed in around her as she ascended the steps and she became an indistinct gray smear between them.

Force pikes described glittering arcs through her course, but only one found anything but air (the shoulder of another Guardsman). Yukari flinched back as a violet lightsaber burst to life above her and came streaking down…

"**Stop!**"

It extinguished just as a blaster went off, but Ayumu had already reached back to catch the bolt out of the air. She was left standing with one foot on the Empress's knee, pressing the unignited lightsaber gently into her chest and wringing a smoking hand. "Son of a bitch!" the stabbed Guardsman hissed softly.

Apart from that, nobody quite knew what to do or say.

"Get off of me!" Yukari suddenly yelled, pushing her back. The Sithling gave easily, skittering back down the steps and kneeling again as the Guardsmen parted and resumed their places. "Okay, you've made your point. I have some more questions for you, Nochichi, but make her go away!"

"**Wait outside,**" Nochichi said. Ayumu nodded shakily and left much more quickly than she'd arrived. Once the double-doors had closed the Empress steepled her fingers. "Will she do anything we tell her to?"

"**More or less. She's still squeamish about hurting people, but I have a way to work that out.**"

"And you told me you Sith gain power from your hatred… what does she hate?"

"**Me and everything I stand for. Which would include you, I suppose.**"

"Then how do I know she won't sneak into my room with a cleaver one night?"

"**Because she has a lightsaber.**"

"Har har…"

Meanwhile outside, Ayumu stood regarding the two Guardsmen on either side of the doors. They stood absolutely stock-still, nearly enough so to convince her they were statues. "_Shiisa Yaibimi?_" she muttered, standing on her toes to wave a hand in one's visor. He didn't react. Hmm…

She paced back and forth for a few moments until her curiosity became unbearable. The Guardsman finally shifted uncomfortably when she took her lightsaber and poked him with its inert mouth. Ayumu replaced it and stood back, satisfied with a mystery solved. But then something else occurred to her.

"You know… I always wondered why you guys wore red cloaks."

Almost imperceptibly, the soldier looked towards his partner across doorway, who gave an even tinier shrug. "I don't know," he replied.

"Wouldn't black be more intimidating? Or do they save that for Sith?"

"I always thought it was so that if I started bleeding nobody could see," the Guardsman volunteered.

"Yeah," Ayumu said, "But don't blasters cauterize wounds anyway? Even my lightsaber does."

"It does?"

"I could cut your head right off and you wouldn't bleed a drop," she affirmed.

He edged away from her a little. "Is that… is that so?"

"**Come back in,**" Nochichi called.

"Oh, I have to go. It was nice talking to you." Both turned slightly to watch her go back in. "See you guys later!"

"That's gonna be our new boss?"

"Shh!"

Already the atmosphere of the Imperial Palace had started to change. In short time, Darth Nochichi's reign of terror would be replaced by Darth Mito's reign of weird.

* * *

And so word spread among the nobles and high officials that their Empress had a new Sith minion. Those who had always scoffed at the idea of an all-binding Force had a good laugh while those who feared the terrible Sith of legend went to hack shamans to have their anti-Dark Side pendants recharged ("NYAAAARRRGH!").

A rare few with intelligence and discernment neither dismissed this development nor resorted to superstition. They tried in their various subtle ways to get the measure of this new player, but most of them were finally convinced to disregard her when it became clear to them that she was nothing but a harmless bubble-head.

However, in the depths of the Unknown Regions, there was one who had a bit more insight than his peers. A battered Imperial fleet forged ahead, bravely pressing the attack against its alien foes and spreading Yukari's dominion yet further into the Unknown Regions.

Aboard its flagship, a man sat in shadow, surrounded by holographic representations of a few watercolors. The vessel's captain entered diffidently and looked about in surprise; the holographic gallery was usually absolutely filled with the artwork of one culture or another. This was how the Grand Admiral took the measure of his enemies: through their art.

"Who are these from?" he asked.

The Admiral's glowing eyes opened slowly. "Our new Sith. As it turns out she's a painter and an amateur poet." He grimaced slightly. "_Very _amateur."

"If I may ask, Grand Admiral, what have you found out?"

"The paintings suggest a sad and gentle spirit: hardly Sith material. But there's also… something else." The captain waited patiently for him to elaborate. "For once," Thrawn finally mused, "I'm glad we're way out here."


	30. Interlude 1: Maidens with White Hands

**Interlude One – Maidens With White Hands**

"You know, Chihiro, I don't think I'll ever get tired of looking at Hoth," Matsuyama said. He and his partner (she wasn't really a subordinate anymore) sat in the lounge of the _Aster Eater_, sipping cold drinks and doing their best to enjoy this short respite from their Intelligence duties. The ice planet hung beneath them, twisting with endless minute variations of white and light-blue. "I mean, I've never seen anything like it."

"If you say so." Chihiro had stood on too many flight-decks and looked down at too many worlds for them to have the same effect on her. She suspected that he was enjoying it so much because of his newfound freedom. "Say, something you were reading really surprised you before we came down here. What was it?"

"Oh, someone ordered a hit on the Empress," Matsuyama answered casually. "One of Kurosawa's peers in the Big Four, apparently."

"Wh-?" Chihiro only _just_ managed to avoid doing a spit-take all over Matsuyama's freshly-cleaned dress uniform. "On the… no, no, no way! Forget it! It's just _not done!_ Short of waylaying an asteroid and blowing up the planet she's on… no, I take that back, someone tried it five-hundred years ago and _that _didn't even work! Between Nochichi and the Empress's Hand and all those Guardsmen and the armored motorcades and shielded palaces… it has to be impossible!"

"No need to freak out." Her companion chuckled and turned back to her, leaning on the table conspiratorially. "But you know, if it is possible, I think they called in the right people. Have you heard of the Ayase family?"

"Have I!" That famed family of assassins, an unbroken dynasty of infallible death-dealers whose history stretched back farther than the Empire's itself, was known to anybody who had even dipped their big toe in the world of interplanetary espionage. "Don't tell me…"

"The Matriarch of Ayase would never take that job," Matsuyama continued. "She doesn't fancy herself much of a political activist. But her eldest daughter, Asagi, ran off when the Patriarch passed away. She hooked up with a childhood friend and they formed a group of their own. It's called _Blanc,_ I think."

"_Blanc_?" Chihiro had the feeling there was a joke in the name, but she couldn't pick it out.

"They're shockingly unprofessional and splashy most of the time, but they've pulled off some… hm, I guess you wouldn't want to call them 'miracles,' would you?"

"So, what, two women are about to try and assassinate the Empress of the Known Universe? I guess we should wish them luck." She paused, looking thoughtful. "Wouldn't that be bizarre, though? Yukari's so determined to become renowned for something… what if it was as the first Empress to be assassinated?"

"Why do I find that thought so amusing?" Matsuyama snickered. "God, that's horrible!"

"Yes, it seriously is," Chihiro agreed, expression flat.

Matsuyama shut up.

* * *

As it turned out, the Empress was surprisingly vulnerable to those with the right information. Most of her day-to-day travel about the Imperial City was in a small, unmarked armored car with starship-grade shields (though she often complained about not being able to use her gaudy hover-limo.) It zipped through the concrete jungles beneath Coruscant's thoroughfares, never spending more than an hour in the open, its routes unplanned. Only the Director of Imperial Intelligence knew how to find it any given moment… which would have been a great deal if Madame Director herself hadn't wanted the Empress out of her way for a while now.

_Ackbar's Seafood Shindig_, a "Family Restaurant" just seventy meters or so above Coruscant's uninhabitable depths, was an unlikely place for the fate of the Galaxy to be decided. Thus, nobody thought much of it when a tall, willowy and very pretty woman walked out onto its balcony with a parcel under her arm and leaned on the rail. Her pale hair flowed fetchingly in the cold wind that howled between Coruscant's towers.

After a few minutes her recently acquired bodyguard, a typically enormous Valerian with spiky hair, came plodding up with an ice cream cone in each hand. She accepted hers with a quick-but-winning smile, which seemed to be all the thanks he needed. It was plain to see that the man was quite hung up on her.

"Hmm," she said lazily, "I was really hoping for chocolate. Better luck next time."

"Ack!" he jumped, centimeters short of bashing his head on the overhang. "I'll run back and-!"

"No, no, it's okay," she waved him down, sweat-dropping on the inside. "You shouldn't take me so seriously, Little Takeshi. I don't usually mean anything by it when I say things like that."

"Huh?"

"Ha!" She smiled again. "That was a rare moment of candor, a break in the shimmering, gorgeous facade of Asagi Ayase! You should be grateful."

"Oh, I am!" He bowed quickly.

Asagi stared up at him, eyebrow raised. _What did I just tell you?_

"Er… so what are we doing here?" Takeshi asked, rubbing the back of his head. He hadn't gotten the hang of all this cloak-and-dagger stuff yet.

"Eating ice-cream," Asagi answered helpfully, casually checking her watch. "Oh, and… oops!" The parcel tumbled out of her arms and disappeared into the darkness beneath them. Her exclamation was so bright and cheerful that it was obvious the drop was intentional, but she still felt the need to grab Takeshi's sleeve lest he dive after it in a fit of poorly thought-out devotion. Of course, had he made any move to jump, her weight would have done nothing to stop him.

"Was that-?"

"All part of the plan," Asagi assured him, then clicked open her communicator. "Torako?"

"Yeah," a deep, tired female voice replied.

"Are you ready?"

"Yeah." They signed off.

"That should be it for us, Little Takeshi. Why don't we head down and see how she's doing? It'll probably be over by then."

Several hundred meters below them, in an abandoned room that had once been an apartment before the concrete-eating slugs or whatever had taken over, a lanky figure stirred at the center of a field of crushed cigarettes. It was a towering scarecrow of a woman, springing heavily to her feet and stretching expansively.

Torako brushed dark bangs out of her eyes and knelt by the room's window, hefting a long, custom-built rifle. The scope was already set to the proper range, though she spared a glance through it to make certain. Sliding a fresh cigarette into the corner of her mouth, Torako settled in to wait once more.

Meanwhile, not far away, the aforementioned little armored car sped along towards the Imperial Palace, completely unaware of its coming date with a powerful but primitive bomb, plunging silently into its course without the benefit of an electronic timer or guidance system—totally analog and nigh undetectable.

Yukari was sprawled out in the back, turning the whole seat into a brouhaha of colorful robes and loud snoring. The newly christened Empress's Hand was curled up against a window, almost seeming to shrink from her. Ayumu really didn't enjoy these drives, especially now that she was forced to sit next to her liege (she had a tendency to distract the drivers.) This time, though, something seemed particularly rotten. She leaned forward to lay a soft hand on their chauffer's arm. "Slow down a bit, will ya?"

Normally the driver only listened to the Empress, but he'd heard stories that Ayumu could shatter bones with her touch, so he made an exception just this once.

Torako's mellow eye fell on the armored car as it rounded a corner in the distance. "Yep," she muttered softly. Zooming in (but keeping her original range as a preset), she could just make out the driver and two figures in the back. Yukari's hair was unmistakable. "So the package should be… uh oh."

She noticed that the vehicle was going about half the predicted clip… and hadn't Yukari's companion glanced up just as the scope fell on them? That wasn't the Empress's Hand, was it? Don't be paranoid, she's not really looking at you! Torako snapped open her com and pulled the cigarette free. "They're wise."

"Looks like our best-laid plans are laid to waste," Asagi's replied lightly. "If you think you can, take the…" she was drowned out when the falling package finally reached Torako's depth and exploded. _WHOOM! _Coughing bitterly, she put her eye to the scope again and saw that the car was completely unfazed, hurtling along at its top speed, shields turned up so high that the air about it was visibly distorted. "Forget it."

Even worse news: there was only one figure in the backseat. At that speed… adrenaline stabbed through Torako nauseously, an unfamiliar feeling to the normally steady-nerved young woman. In fact, the jolt almost scared her more than its cause. "Asagi," she started, voice strained, but then the car's radio interference kicked in and her communicator went dead. "Crap!"

Twenty levels up, her partner broke into a dead run, genuinely unnerved for the first time in years. Takeshi swallowed his worry and thumped along after her, but skidded to a halt when they came to a gap between buildings. Asagi leapt across without hesitation, rolling gracefully on the other side. "Well, you only live once, right?" he said nervously. Trying his hardest not to look down, the Valerian hurled himself after. "Hyup!" _THUD!_

Torako stood sharply and wrenched her rifle off of its stand. Out the window with it, then—she could always get another rifle, but she'd never find a new head if that psychotic Sithling decapitated her. Why was that notion so much scarier than just getting shot?

She looked down to set the charge that would blast this room and all evidence of her passing to cinders, but when Torako's eyes rose again… _she _was already there. A slight little bird of a girl, long brown hair, big brown eyes, and not even those Sith robes could make her look menacing. She crouched in the window, balanced easily on its narrow edge, gazing at Torako with a distant, vaguely surprised expression. Oh, no doubt, there was something _off_ about this one. "Just one of ya?"

"You-!" Torako choked, swinging the unwieldy rifle up. She knew on some level that she had practically no chance of surviving the next three seconds, but that was no reason to quit just yet. The Sith hopped from the windowsill and landed on the rifle's barrel, one hand flicking her cloak back and darting down towards the saber at her belt.

The rifle fell and Torako stepped forward, throwing a hand across her body to catch the smaller woman's wrist just as her saber came free. Its brilliant blade crackled out, turning the room violet and scaring the assassin crapless. _Why didn't I use my left-?_ shot across Torako's mind before she realized that her left hand still held the new cigarette. Without an instant's further thought, she jammed its burning end into her foe's forehead, eliciting a totally un-Sith-like yelp.

She couldn't enjoy her triumph for even a second, though. Inexplicably, the cigarette's heat was sucked away and it was left cold in her hand. One booted foot struck down on her hip, another was planted on her chest and Torako was abruptly pitching backwards, the girl's delicate hands threaded through her dark hair. Stars blasted in her vision as her head skipped off the chipped tiles, and then their duel was over.

But what was happening _now_? All at once, Torako felt cold. Her head, specifically. Why in the Galaxy should her head feel so very…? Ahh. Just as the Sith had drawn the heat out of her cigarette, so was the vital warmth being drawn from her body. It hadn't even been a second and she was already far-gone enough that this knowledge didn't particularly bother her. So it would be a soft death for her… just fall asleep…

Torako gazed calmly up into the Sith's eyes. They were mostly empty, the eyes of someone hiding inside of themselves--but something flickered around their edges. She was… sad? She didn't really want to be doing this? Torako felt a sharp pang of annoyance; Sith or no, to be killed by someone who was so unmotivated—

As it turned out, her irritation saved her life. It made her hold on just long enough for Asagi to kick the door in and fire her blaster into the vampire's side. Mito stumbled away with a sharp cry of pain, but rather than simply falling over dead, she just straightened and parried the next two bolts.

"You're kidding!" Asagi snapped.

"'Fraid not. Or did I make a joke without realizin' it? That happens a lot…"

Asagi blinked in momentary confusion, but didn't let the banter break her concentration. "Stay back! Torako, you okay?"

"Go 'way," she mumbled. "'m tired."

"What did you do to her?"

"I was-_awp!_" This was Asagi's patented 'blast 'em while they're in mid-sentence' ploy, which had worked on dozens of targets. But unfortunately, the Sithling didn't pitch to the ground with a hole in her face—Asagi was left staring in disbelief as she clutched a handful of smoke over her head. "Ya don't wanna talk, then?" Darth Mito asked, determination hardening her manner. "Good. Just makes it worse…"

"Uh, well, if you wanted we could—!" Asagi hit the deck and her opponent whipped overhead, leaving a blazing purple arc at about the level of her neck. She threw a back-kick without looking and almost laughed when it connected with what felt like a kidney, throwing the Sith further along her ballistic path and smacking her against the wall.

It was then that Asagi finally noticed her partner's explosive charge counting down. A little more than three minutes before the room became a hole-in-the-wall, and her foe doubtless wouldn't give her time to stop it. Grand. _Why'd you have to be so thorough _this_ time, Torako? C'mon! The cigarette butts are like our calling card!_

Both combatants whirled at the same moment, Asagi incorporating a turning kick into the motion that set Mito's lightsaber clattering across the floor. She'd inherited a lot of lousy traits from her mother, but it was nice to have gotten those long legs, at least. "Say goodbye, little assassin!" she crowed, leveling her blaster at the Sith's forehead point-blank.

"Huh? Aren't _you_ the assassin?"

Asagi's eyebrow twitched, and in that moment it was too late. Something incredible plowed into her, like the shockwave from a percussive charge, but one that didn't stop. "Wha-a-a-?" she couldn't get her question out through the rattling pain, and forgot about it when she tripped over Torako and crashed to the floor.

The shockwave finally faded away, leaving them both lying helpless. After a brief hesitation, Mito started sadly forward, arms hanging limply at her sides. Asagi almost felt sorry for her for a moment, remembering her own early days as an assassin. Then she _really_ felt sorry for the girl, because she obviously didn't notice that colossal silhouette with the gleaming eyes behind her…

One Valerian-sized backhand later and the Sithling was tumbling end-over-end into the concrete wall, hitting headfirst with a sickening crack. She flopped bonelessly to the ground as Takeshi rushed forward. "Asagi! Asagi, are you okay?"

"Oh, yeah…" she sat up. "You're late."

"Sorry, boss. I don't like heights."

"What about you, Torako?" Torako grumbled, mimicking his voice. "Are you okay? I don't know what I'd do if you…"

"You, of all people, don't like heights? Do you spend every minute of every day in a panic, then?" Asagi's brow furrowed. There was something important that she was forgetting…

"What the heck is that?" Takeshi shrieked, leaping into the air rather comically. Somehow, Darth Mito had already risen, and stood looking up at him blearily, clutching her head. There was a small spot of blood on the wall where she'd hit; fortunately the Valerian didn't notice, because he felt rotten enough about hitting her already.

"Oh my God!" she cried, pointing. Takeshi braced himself for her to say what _everybody_ in the freaking _galaxy _said upon first seeing him, but- "How do you get your hair to do that?"

"Buh?" Takeshi ran a hand over the top of his head. "Naturally spiky."

"Are you even human?" She stared disbelievingly at the offending locks. "No human's hair could ever do that naturally!"

"Of _course_ I'm human! _Homo Sapiens Valera!_" Takeshi's eye flickered to the side. Asagi was sitting up, quietly miming pummeling someone into a pulp and staring at him pointedly. He sighed heavily. This was the part of bodyguarding he didn't like.

"Sorry, we were fightin', weren't we?" Mito shook herself. "That knock to the head made me lose my train of-" Takeshi's reluctant punch folded her in two, where an even more reluctant fist popped down on the back of her head and put her lights out. "Sorry, kid! Sorry!"

"There was something going on, here…" Torako mumbled, dazed.

"Yeah… but for the life of me, I--oh, yeah!" Asagi snapped her fingers. "The bomb!"

"Wha-?" Takeshi looked up.

There were twelve seconds.

Asagi had ribbed Takeshi mercilessly when he'd bought himself a beltclip-style personal shield, refusing to wear one herself. Couldn't someone as big and tough as him eat blaster-bolts for breakfast? Or was he getting it in case Torako decided to beat him up? You know, a slow knife can penetrate those things easily. And would you look at the size of that beltclip? Disco is dead, man! Maybe he should just get the whole hog and buy a starfighter while he's at it! Clip a Z-95 Headhunter to his belt, eh? He was probably big enough to drag one of those around…

But Takeshi had never seemed quite so admirable in her eyes as just this moment. Scooping her up in one arm and Torako in the other, he dialed the shield on, took two prodigious steps towards safety and _BOOM!_ The bodyguard curled protectively around them both and roared in pain—no, not just pain. It was the first time Asagi had ever heard a true Valerian bellow from him, the cry of a spirit that was as big as he was, rumbling out of his chest and through her whole body. Would she ever be able to call him Little Takeshi again? Weird that such a ferocious sound could make her feel so safe, even as fire and shrapnel scourged the man's back and buffeted them fiercely.

The three of them stayed huddled together for quite a while after that, Takeshi making soft little sounds that she couldn't identify. Torako seemed to have passed out. "Oh…" their protector finally muttered. "Now I've killed a kid."

"She was twenty, at least," Asagi whispered, "And--_shh!_" Her sharp eyes had roved up from the enormous expanse of Takeshi's colorful shirt to hover over his shoulder. Across the thoroughfare, a small, tattered, smoking figure stood, searching the wreckage with stony, unfocused eyes. Even from this distance, the assassin could see that the little Sith had been scorched on the inside as well. _You must think we're goners… was this your first time, child? It'll get easier, I promise._

She stared back, nerves jangling. Surely, amid all the fire and debris on this side, dazed and injured as she must be, the Empress's Hand couldn't make them out. And sure enough, she finally turned away, slipping off into the shadows of Coruscant's underbelly. Asagi couldn't shake the feeling that they'd made eye-contact, though…

* * *

The three of them wove down a moving concourse, supporting each other like a cluster of drunks. It would be too dangerous to stop at a certified hospital, and Takeshi squeamishly refused to have his wounds treated at an underground one, so Asagi had hauled herself to a drugstore to pick up some bandages and regen cream, sporting sunglasses and an outfit that mostly hid her build. She stumbled a little on her assumed name, but given how badly the Sith attack had rattled her brains (literally), it could be forgiven.

How long would being thought dead protect them? They were depending entirely on chance. Would Kasuga think to give their descriptions to anyone? Would the _Nightwind_ be impounded? Would Perimeter Enforcement be alerted in case they tried to leave? Were Stormies gathering around their ship even now?

Fortunately, they'd be pretty much in the clear if they made it off the ground. Asagi had arranged for a section of the planetary shield to be opened for them in the next hour, and only outlaws with little love for the Empress had the means to screw her on that one.

"Can we rest a bit?" Torako asked as they neared the dock.

"You'll just fall asleep," Asagi reached over unsteadily and punched her arm, hiding a wince at how cold her friend still felt. "Hold on a bit longer, 'kay?"

"Whatever."

When they finally stood outside the _Nightwind's _birth, though, Asagi stopped them. "Look. Someone tried to bomb us." She indicated a tiny lump, barely visible in the shadow of its nose. "Just a firebomb, antipersonnel, looks like… not Imperial… and jeez, and what a pathetic job they did planting it!" She drew her blaster and raised it, barrel wavering drunkenly. "Bet you ten credits I get it on my first shot."

"Um…" Takeshi started.

"My ship!" Torako gasped. "Don't—that's a custom paintjob, you-!"

"Wait, how can you tell all of that from this distance?" the bodyguard asked.

"I'm mostly guessing." Asagi's blaster spoke once, twice, thrice and finally she set the firebomb off. The _Nightwind's _nose vanished in a bright-orange flower, liquid fire splashing over its surface and cascading down to pool on the ground. A torrent of flame-retardant foam immediately roared out of the ceiling, combating the flaming gel on equal terms before a second dose piled on and doused it. Fortunately, Emergency Services rarely stirred itself to respond to calls this deep in the city, and the dock's owners knew better than to ask questions about blasterfire in the berths. "Just don't leave any corpses here," was their motto.

"My… my ship!" Torako jerked away from Takeshi and wobbled on her feet, staring in horror. "Y-you're burning my ship!"

"It's metal, silly," Asagi reminded her. "It won't burn."

"_That's not the point! _God, I need a cigarette!" Asagi smiled sweetly and held out the pack she'd bought at the drugstore. "All is forgiven," Torako snapped, snatching it.

"Boy, that sure woke you up…" Before she could finish, Asagi's com chirped and she stepped away from Takeshi to answer it. Bereft of physical support, the Valerian sank heavily onto the bench, grunting when his back came up against the rough wall.

"Yes, I'll pay." Asagi tapped her foot for a second. "Hello? Oh… hello, _Mother_."

"Tak, come on. Let's go search the ship," Torako said quickly, grabbing his arm and tugging him urgently along. "Do you remember how to start her up? We've got to get going."

"What?"

"We're in a bit of a rush, and that's not something we want to overhear anyway. Asagi and her mom have some… issues." They hobbled quickly towards the ship, just in time to get doused by a mass of water that crashed down to clean away the foam. Asagi pointed and giggled, but neither of them spared her a glance as they vanished up the gangplank, carefully searching for more surprises.

"I'm sorry, I missed that, Mother. … No, no, it didn't work out," Asagi nodded easily. "Yeah, I guess you were right this time. What? … _What? _…Look, just because I conceded a point to you doesn't mean I'm mocking you! … Hey, I'm not trying to condescend! What did you call me? … Demon child? Ha! You've been training me to kill people since I was knee-high, what other kind of child did you want?" She sat down. Her voice was antagonized, but she was smiling in a pugilistic sort of way. "I swear, if it wasn't Father's dying wish that … oh, so he faked his death_ again? _… No! Don't put him on! Tell him I've grieved and moved on, or whatever! Honestly!" Though she would probably have to give him a call some other time, if only to mock him.

"Oh, and now you're calling me an incompetent assassin, how original. Shame of the family? Heard it before. … Yeah, I absolutely suck because I didn't manage to kill the Empress of the Known Universe. … Yes! I said that on this line, you heard me, didn't you? Got a problem? Hold on."

Asagi covered the mouthpiece and laughed out loud, then composed herself and dove right back in. "If I'm so incompetent, what do you suppose keeps happening to the hitmen you send after me? … No, the sun _wasn't _in his eyes! By the way, shame on you for pitting me against my own sister. … Yeah, Fuka's on her way back. … Galactic Express. I got overnight shipping. … No, no, you won't have to pay when she gets there, I used my card. … Yes, of _course_ I punched air holes for her! … Oh, don't be so hard on her. Fuka did everything by the book, just the way you taught her. Come to think of it, that's probably why I got her. --Yeah, I caught her hanging halfway through a window, it was pretty funny. … Nope. Y'know, you should have let her keep that bow, her codename could've been Death Cupid or…"

"Asagi Ayase!" a harsh voice snapped. "(I finally found you!)"

She glanced up calmly and saw that Greedo had entered the bay while she was laughing and stood holding his blaster on her. "Huh?" she continued into the phone. "Oh, someone's holding a gun to my head."

"(No talking!)"

"He's telling me not to talk. Honestly, Mother, _Greedo?_ You're really scraping the bottom of the barrel."

"(Hey!)"

"Hold on a sec." Asagi set the communicator aside and took a few seconds to beat the snot out of him, casually continuing her conversation once she'd finished. "Okay, I'm back. … What, you didn't send him? Then who…?"

"(It was a bounty! There's a trillion credits on your head!)" Greedo gurgled, clutching his groin. The assassin's eyes widened momentarily. _So Mito _did _see us! But why didn't she…?_ "(Um… and I apologize about the firebomb. If it helps, I don't think the Imperials know this is your ship yet.)"

"No big," Asagi said pleasantly. "Well, I have to go, Mother. … That's right. A trillion. … No, I'm _not _kidding, look it up! … Okay, sure. Yeah, so I'll be disappearing for, like, a decade or two. Huh? No, not longer, I have a good feeling about that Rebellion. … Hug Ena for me, will you? But don't tell her it's from me because she might remember that time I chloroformed her. … I don't know why she wouldn't. The stuff doesn't cause brain-damage, does it? …Hmmm… Well, all the best! Ciao."

She snapped the com shut and stood, cursing softly when her leg almost gave and she stumbled. She'd quite forgotten about being wounded for a minute there. "You should take up a new business," she advised Greedo, "Before you end up frapped and mixed into someone's drink."

"(I think I will. This seriously sucks.)"

"And just so you know," Asagi chuckled wearily as she started limping towards the _Nightwind_. "I'd be the first one to try that brew."


	31. Spiral

_Debrief: And then what happened?_

_CF: Well, we came back to the base and there she was. The Corporal was all like, "Hey! You're trespassing! Get out of here or we'll shoot!" and we pointed our blasters at her._

_Debrief: How did she respond?_

_CF: She yawned. And let me tell you, it was a magnificent one; none of us could look away. That really stuck in my mind for some reason. After that, everything went to hell._

-Transcript of the debriefing of Pvt. Cole Fardreamer (classified)

* * *

**30: Spiral**

High Treason turned out to be the best career move Matsuyama ever made. In Kurosawa, he had a single boss who didn't have a hair-trigger temper, wasn't involved in a vicious tangle of backstabbing internal politics and wouldn't be angry because he told her the truth.

And furthermore, she actually seemed to _care_. Yukari and her underlings had this apathy about them that made it hard to bestir one's self to fight for them. Kurosawa, on the other hand, had a _cause,_ and yet she still managed to avoid losing the trees for the forest.

Minamo Kurosawa was as near to the perfect commander as he had ever seen.

"We have a name," Matsuyama said triumphantly. 'We have a name, face and history. Anything you want to know about this Darth Mito, I can tell you."

"Is that so?"

"Ayumu Kasuga, a minor noble of Thyferran descent, spent most of her life on Bespin, eventually becoming the chief executive of a city called Osaka under questionable circumstances. She's 22 years old, brown hair, brown eyes, 1.6 meters tall and when not terrorizing hardened rebels enjoys painting in watercolors and long walks in secluded areas. I thought you'd be particularly interested in that last point."

"Impressive," Kurosawa allowed. "So you can answer any question about her?"

"Try me."

"What can we do about her?"

Matsuyama opened his mouth proudly… paused… shut his eyes… "Damn."

"I got the reports from Borleas. All the Imperials have to do is throw one of those annoying pinwheels and our guys break and run."

"Bloody ridiculous," Matsuyama gritted. "She's supposed to be blaster-proof and throw fireballs and fly and summon demon stormtroopers from thin air and all kinds of other crazy things. The only thing I can think of is that she's some kind of master of illusion."

"Have you been looking into anti-Sith methods?"

"Of course. But you know how it is. All these snake-oil salesmen, myths and legends… and we don't really have a good way to test what we try unless you want us to start beating up on Chiyo-chan."

"I didn't want to, but it seems we have no choice except to send her against Mito," Kurosawa sighed and rested her elbows on her desk. "I just wish that this didn't have to fall on the shoulders of a 13-year old."

"14 last week," Matsuyama corrected.

"Congratulate her for me. And then tell her she has to get rid of Ayumu Kasuga."

* * *

Ayumu sneezed.

"Bless you," the Guardsman next to her said absently. She sat at a long table in the Guardsmen's Mess, poking unenthusiastically at what might have been scrambled eggs, if rubber chickens laid eggs. A few small parts and a marble-sized gemstone were in a pile next to her tray.

The Mess was a large, grandiose room designed for a much happier age when there were enough Guardsmen to fill it. (The advent of Nochichi had thinned their population a little.) Great stone tables now stood empty, the men in their simple red day uniforms clustered near the vast room's center. Half were in shadow, the other half in a shaft of light from one of the great windows overlooking the glittering cityscape.

They weren't generally a talkative bunch, but they'd accepted her easily enough. In fact, it was almost as if their domicile had acquired a cat as she moved silently among them, a pleasant, soft presence that was easy to miss.

Ayumu wondered why these men were so uniformly grim and quiet, but she wasn't sure how to broach the subject, exactly. "**What kind of a lousy Sith are you?**" Nochichi asked mockingly, "**Demand the answer! Tear it from their minds!**"

She gasped and covered her eyes. This earned her a concerned glance or two, but they were used to such behavior out of her. A few even speculated that she was hearing voices, but not too loudly.

"Anybody catch the Shockball finals?" a guy near the end asked blandly.

"Mandalore won 17-12," someone else replied. A collective groan rose among the Guardsmen, broken when one jumped onto his bench. "HA HAAA! Bam, bitches! I's gettin' paid! You owe me, and you owe me and you…"

Ayumu blinked at him. She'd never seen any of their number act quite that way before. Perhaps there was more to these gents than she had at first imagined? "That's nothing," the guy next to her (Tarvis? Something like that…) commented, noticing her reaction. "You should see him when he plays Risk."

"But why are we usually so quiet?"

"I think it's the food," he shrugged. "What are you working on, anyway?"

"Oh, this?" She picked up the gem and a small metal spindle and started poking them together. "Nochichi threw it at me and said to make a new lightsaber."

Tarvis leaned forward a little and squinted at the stone. "I thought that the technique for making those was lost."

"He said I'd figure it out."

"Huh."

"Sometimes I wonder about him…" the Captain of the Guard commented, reaching for a pitcher of orange juice, "Where he came from and why we have to listen to him, you know?"

"**And whether asking too many questions will get you decapitated?**" Ayumu managed to stifle her reaction that time. _Don't you have anything better to be doing? Kicking puppies or something?_ "I wouldn't know," she replied. "He doesn't tell me anything… wait a second!"

The Captain had just finished pouring his glass of orange juice. "Huh?"

"Do that again," she said urgently. He shrugged and poured another glass. "No, no, no, the way you did before. I have to see it again!"

"Um…" he poured yet a third glass. Ayumu looked back and forth between him and the lightsaber parts for a few seconds, and just when they were sure she'd demand he pour another one, she sprang up onto the table and kissed him deeply, arching his upper back uncomfortably. "Thank you so much! You're a genius!"

She hurriedly gathered up the pieces and rushed from the room.

The Guardsmen were all staring at their Captain. He looked around, realizing that how he dealt with this sudden and startling move by the terrifying Sith would affect how the men saw him forever after. "She's a good kisser," he finally said nonchalantly, sitting down to enjoy his triple-shot.

* * *

"**I thought you would appreciate this demonstration,**" Nochichi hovered before the Empress once more, Ayumu lost in his shadow. He was purple with amusement, which, if anything, was even more unnerving than his anger. "**Our little Sithling's showing a new ability that I find rather entertaining.**"

"Well hurry up," Yukari said, "I have things to do."

Ayumu stepped forward and turned aside, glancing back at her master. "H-how were we going to do this again?" Nochichi responded by putting his crimson lightsaber through her head. "WAUGH!" she fell on her butt, panicked, but completely unharmed.

"What was that?" Yukari yelped, wide-eyed.

"**She seems to be able to slide into another dimension for short stints.**" He indicated a bandage on her hand. "**We tested; it never lasts more than a second, but it can still prove to be useful.**"

Yukari nodded slowly. It made sense that this girl would have the power to be _not quite_ there… "Okay, I'm amused. Now get outta here, I have… uh… briefs to work on."

"**I've seen your schedule,**" Nochichi replied, even more brightly purple. "**Sleep well, my Empress.**"

* * *

'Through your _head?_" Tarvis asked incredulously. He and Ayumu walked across one of the Imperial Palace's many roofs, enjoying a breeze that managed to thin the omnipresent smog a bit.

"Yeah," she shrugged. "I don' know how I'm learnin' ta do these things, it's just happenin'. Y'know that Force Shriek bit I do?" Ayumu's accent was creeping back, betraying how at ease she felt. Of all this aloof and stoic bunch, Tarvis was the closest she had to a friend.

"Sure."

"We found out it makes somethin' called Topocrine blow up. I don' even know what it is, 'cept that it sounds like somethin' you rub on your chest for a cold…"

Tarvis chuckled. "They use it for energy, I think. But it's, like, unstable so they only use it for small things that need a lot of power. Welding torches, artificial limbs, things like that."

Ayumu stopped and stared at him. "Art-? Y'don't say."

"Well, I could be wrong."

A few minutes passed in amiable silence.

"Say, there was somethin' I bin meanin' to ask you," Ayumu's voice was a hesitant.

"Shoot."

"Well… what _happened_ t'all you guys?"

"I'm, uh, I'm sorry?"

She hopped up onto the wall, easily dangling her feet over a seventy-meter drop. Tarvis winced slightly, but didn't say anything for fear of startling her over the edge. "You… the Guardsmen… y'all 're so, so _grim._ Well, I mean, y'know how ta have fun an' stuff, but still…"

"Do you know how we became Imperial Guardsmen?"

"No…"

"When we started training, we were each assigned a partner. We trained together for years, we and our brothers. Hiking the volcanic plains of Ryloth, sparring with Valerians, resisting torture and starvation…"

Ayumu noticed that Tarvis was uncomfortably close behind her. "We had to kill them. For our final test, each pair would have to fight to the death before the Emperor as an ultimate show of loyalty."

She gasped. "Th-that's horrible! But what does it- what does it prove?"

"It proves that we'll do _anything_ by his command. And now by the command of his daughter... You see why our outlooks aren't as sunny as they might be."

"But…" Ayumu's eyes swam. "It's so… so…"

"**Do you have a problem?**"

When Tarvis flinched and turned towards the voice, Ayumu realized it wasn't just in her head. Darth Nochichi floated behind them, cloak billowing in the breeze that had been so pleasant until just a moment ago.

"Yes! Yes, I do!" Ayumu plucked up her courage and stood on the ledge facing him. "The Empire's a horrible, barbaric… uh…" Nochichi had changed his color to a swirling mass of purple and red. "It's the most…"

The Sith Lord pressed into her, making her teeter uncomfortably. "**Do you have any _other_ problems?**"

"N-no," she replied meekly.

"**And what are _you _doing up here?**" he asked, turning towards Tarvis. "**With her?**"

"I, uh, I like walking up here."

"And I like walking up here, too!"

"**_Who frickin' asked you?_**" The force of his yell almost put her over the side.

"I have a girlfriend back home, if that's what you're concerned about, Lord No…" the Guardsman started.

"**I'm disappointed to hear this sort of talk out of you, Ayumu. I had come to offer a reward for your performance on Borleas… I suppose it wouldn't be sporting to deprive you of it now. If you wish, you will be allowed to visit your family on Thyferra.**"

"What? R-really?"

"**You're looking a gift Ronto in the mouth. Leave before I change my mind.**"

As Ayumu entered the West Hangar, an unfriendly pair of eyes fell on her back. Turning, she saw one of the Brothers leaning against a wall nearby, watching her with a nasty smirk. It was the eldest, a tall, cruel-faced fellow with long hair of that hideous orange-red.

"What do you want?" she asked coldly.

The loathsome creature turned on his heel and left, giving her the distinct impression that she was the butt of some awful joke that he was in on. But there would be time enough to worry about that lot later…

* * *

"Why are you always brooding?"

Chiyo jerked in surprise, causing Maya to jump from her lap and turn an irritated circle on the carpet. He hissed what was surely catspeak for "I was just getting comfortable, you stupid lump!"

Miru hopped the back of the couch next to her and cuffed her gently. "Seriously, I don't know if I've heard you laugh since we got here!"

Yuka walked around the other side and sat on the arm. "But she doesn't have the eyebrows to brood, you know? I'd say she was pouting… or maybe, uh…"

"Moping?"

"Yeah, perfect! Moping. I think-" then she noticed Maya and lost her train of thought. With a squeal, Yuka all but tackled the Sand Panther, rubbing his ears vigorously and making kissy sounds in his face. Chiyo and Miru both cringed back, expecting their friend to be cut to ribbons, but Maya's only reaction was to lick her face and then sprawl heavily into her lap with a gravelly purr.

"How does she do that?" Miru asked.

Chiyo grinned a little. "Natural charisma?"

"She _smiled!_" Miru cried in mock surprise. "It's the end of the galaxy! Hit the deck!"

"Oh, come on, I haven't been that bad, have I?"

"Worse," Yuka replied, scratching Maya's belly.

"Well, we wouldn't know," Miru amended, "We never see you, after all."

"…oh." Chiyo averted her eyes. "Sorry. I've had a lot on my mind."

"We noticed. And you haven't said a word about any of this to anyone, have you? Chiyo-chan, you're being stupid again…"

The prodigy sighed deeply. "I'd rather not share. And to be honest, Miru, if I did, you'd wish I hadn't."

"Yuka, is that a challenge?"

"I think it is, Miru."

"Fine then, hit me." Miru stood, arms akimbo, and thrust her chest out. "Let's go. C'mon, Chiyo-chan. Bring it on!"

"That wasn't a…" Chiyo covered her eyes. "You've been spending too much time around Ms. Kagura." Miru took a light glove out of her pocket and slapped the Jedi's face with it.

"Okay, fine. Here goes: I've found out that I'm some kind of freakish human/Eddorian hybrid created specifically to become the ultimate Sith, and that the Eddorian genes come from Darth Nochichi, who plans to kill me if he can't twist me to the Dark Side. My Aunt, Uncle and Master Sakaki are dead. Now Kurosawa wants to send me out to slaughter all kinds of Imperials, starting with a woman who's being forced to fight me by voices in her head." She drew a deep breath. "And my _arm _got cut off. I'm a little put out."

The two girls stared at her for a few seconds. "Holy crap." Miru finally said. After a few more seconds, Maya made a sound of protest and Yuka remembered herself, returning to her belly-scratching duties.

"So, uh…" Chiyo put a hand to the back of her head. "How… how are you two doing?"

"Boy, this is awkward," Miru said. "What can we say now?"

"We could make fun of her hair," Yuka suggested.

"You mean like how having it all short without the pigtails makes her look like a boy?"

"Well, an effeminate boy with big, pretty eyes, but that's what I was thinking."

"Good idea. Let's mock her until she feels better."

Chiyo looked back and forth between them strangely. Before either could ask what was wrong, though, she gave a sharp, unpracticed laugh. "What would I ever do without you guys?"

* * *

Sleep should have come quickly that night. The prodigy stretched out on her bed, eyes drifting shut to the reassuring hum of the _Katana's_ engines. Maya climbed on and curled up next to her; for a creature that supposedly hated physical contact, he was getting pretty cuddly.

Just as Morpheus was about to take her, though, she heard a faint, distant voice.

_Chiyo-chan!_

Her eyes snapped open. Could it be? _Kamineko-sama? Is that you?_

_You damn well better believe it. I need you to come back to Dagobah._

Chiyo smiled slightly, deliberately putting her hands behind her head. _I thought that you weren't going to help me any more._

_Who said anything about helping you, you selfish little bitch? I'm calling you because I don't want to die alone!_

She was dressed and out the door in a minute flat.

* * *

Nothing felt more familiar and comforting to Ayumu than the warm, moist wind of her home world. Swathed in cerulean and seafoam, she wended her way slowly across the long bridges and soaring walkways, enjoying the bright colors and sweet air for all she was worth.

_Before I drop in on my parents, I'll say hi to Grandmother,_ she decided happily, descending towards the city's cemetery. It was beginning to dawn on her that something was wrong, however. Where were all the pedestrians? There weren't even that many vehicles about. She had never heard the city so _quiet_.

_Crunch, crunch, crunch!_ A dark shape rushed through the foliage nearby. Ayumu was used to the sound of a Vratix jumping, but she didn't catch the thrum of his wings. Unnerved, she picked up her pace, jumping down from walkway to walkway.

Finally her slippered feet sank into the soft, loamy soil of the cemetery. It was much larger than it used to be. Ayumu moved through the stones as she had so many times in the past, coming to a stop at Grandmother Kasuga's grave.

Time stopped.

There was a new marker next to it, much simpler and more workmanlike, just like the man who rested beneath it. "Uncle?" Ayumu sank to her knees before the new marker, disbelieving. Others were there, now that she was looking. Other Kasugas.

Her cousin Arata. Nephew Daichi. Her sister. The city's silence took on new meaning to her; it was a _war. _The Rebels were fighting a war of extermination!

Suddenly, Nochichi saying to "visit her family" took on terrible new meaning.

Something thudded heavily into the loam behind her. Of course the return of a Baroness would not go unnoticed. She turned slowly, surrounded by the thumps of black-painted Vratix coming down all around her.

The leader of the Rebels was eight feet tall, carapace pitted and cracked in battle, wicked claws gleaming in sullen sunlight. As she regarded him, his hideous mouthparts twisted in a way that approximated a smile.

She smiled back.


	32. Macabre Guignol

**31: Macabre Guignol**

"I expected better of you," Kurosawa said, rising behind her desk with a stern look at her visitor. "Getting in a round of fisticuffs over a bottle of ale? You're an adult, Captain, and I expect you to act like it."

Kagura looked at the deck between her feet. "I'm sorry, Professor."

"Sorry is fine for now, but sooner or later somebody is going to get hurt. I had my eye on you for a promotion… I have to say I'm not so sure, now."

The soldier knew better than to respond.

"And seriously, how many times do you think Green has heard the 'unarmed combat demonstration' excuse? But I didn't drag you all the way to the _Mon Remonda _just to chew you out. You've been spending a lot of time with Ms. Mihama, haven't you?"

"Yeah." She blinked. "I mean, yes ma'am."

Kurosawa sat down and turned to look at the stars. Her voice was casual but concerned. "You wouldn't happen to know what could motivate her to hijack one of our bombers and run the Armada's blockade, would you?"

Kagura stared. She had a dozen questions, but the first that came to mind was, "She knows how to fly a _Fenrir_?"

"Not badly, either. She wove right through the fighter screen without damaging any of them."

"Damn…" She'd known Chiyo was some kind of prodigy, but that was just _scary_. "I have no idea why she'd do that though. She kind of closed up since we got back from Tatooine… I don't even know if her little friends knew what was up."

"Little friends?"

"Yeah, Miru and Yuka, the recruits I took to Thyferra?"

"Oh, the _Katana_'s powder monkeys…" Kurosawa considered. "Actually, we're missing Yuka, as well. The Fenrir are two-seaters, so it's safe to assume…"

"Oh, my God," Kagura's eyes widened. "They're the only two people on the whole ship that the beast likes! What did they do with Maya?"

* * *

Maya sat in the center of the floor, staring daggers at Miru as she rose groggily. She stared back at him, then glanced down to read the note taped to her wrist. _I'm very sorry for the inconvenience, but something came up. Please take care of Maya till I return. –C_

After a ten-second staredown, Miru growled slightly. Maya broke off and padded off to curl up in the corner. "That's better."

* * *

Chiyo was alone. Terrifyingly, hopelessly alone. The ground beneath her feet was hardwood, like a stage, while the firmament above was an inky well of shadow. But as she gazed upward, she saw a web of glistening lines looping through the sky, so faint that it hurt her eyes to try and focus on them.

A bright light fell on her, obliterating the universe except for a tight circle of stage about her feet. She just had time to hear an ominous whistling before two of the lines pierced her hands. More came streaking down, stabbing through her knees and feet as she thrashed and the floor was speckled with blood--

"Oh!" Chiyo snapped awake. Hyperspace made a silent, shining tunnel around her. She looked at her hands, half expecting to see the vicious lines digging in, but there was nothing. Now that she noticed it, her natural hand was weathered by thirteen years of grit and sunlight while the other…

"Are you okay, C-chan?"

The prodigy yelped in surprise, wrenching herself around to stare back into the gunner's seat. Sure enough, she saw the back of Yuka's head. Oh, yes… that's right… "Yeah, thanks, it was just a dream."

Yuka half-turned and smiled impishly. "So, do you want to hear how I filched the hangar pass?"

"No. Ms. Tomo taught you, though, didn't she?"

"How did you know?"

"God, how they're corrupting you two…"

"I prefer to think of it as refining us." Yuka propped her feet on the gunner's panel and rested her head on the shoulder of Chiyo's seat. "Where are we going, again?"

"Dagobah… I have to see an ailing friend. Will you be alright with waiting in the fight- er, the bomber? He doesn't know you and he can be a bit… difficult."

"No problem."

"Thanks, Yuka."

"Wanna tell me about this friend?"

"No, I shouldn't…" but at Yuka's pleading look (they weren't facing each other, but she knew the other well enough to imagine it), she relented. "He's two-feet tall, lives alone, is completely insane, and over the time I knew him, he did his best to make my life a living Hell."

"And we hijacked a starship for this guy?"

* * *

"So did she say anything to you? Anywhere she wanted to go?" Kagura asked. "It just doesn't seem like her, y'know?"

Yomi shrugged. "Nothing. I haven't really talked to her a lot since we got back from Tatooine."

"Me neither. What must be going on in her head? She found out about her Aunt and Uncle before Matsuyama. It's kind of creepy…"

Setting aside a well-worn copy of _Hyperspatial Mathematics and You_, Yomi stood and walked to the back of the _Silver Rose_. "I don't have a lot, here, but do you want something to drink?"

"No, thanks."

"Because I think Tomo stashed some Crimson Ale somewhere that…"

"Oh, don't bring the damn ale up… and, uh, don't tell Tomo I visited here, all right? She still wants to strangle me."

Yomi was full of innocent surprise. "But you guys were getting along great!"

"Never mind that. Say, why are you hanging out here, anyway?"

"I'm having a hard time dealing with the crew…"

"Huh? You practically _are_ crew by now!"

"Not anymore. Listen, Kagura, there's something seriously wrong with all of this. The Armada, the _Death Star_, everything. Whenever I try to tell anyone, they just think I'm stirring up trouble."

"What is it?"

"That's just _it!_ I don't know."

Kagura considered. "Maybe you're just suffering a creampuff deficiency."

"What?"

"Yomi, have you been getting enough sugar lately?"

* * *

This time, Chiyo's entry into Dagobah's atmosphere went without incident. She set the Fenrir down in a pristine field not twelve meters from lake of muck that she'd crashed into on her last visit. As the ship's engines ticked and cooled, the girl steeled herself. "I don't know how long I'll be, Yuka."

"Don't worry about me, C-chan." Yuka turned in her chair and hugged the other briefly. "Do what you have to."

Chiyo hopped down from the Fenrir and sank a foot-and-a-half into the swamp. "Augh!" She waved up at Yuka, who looked about to have a heart attack. "Sorry, I'm fine. Just forgot how soupy the ground is here."

A thick, dank mist hung over the endless swamp, reeking of vegetable matter and mud. Huge, sinuous creatures slid through the ambivalent "land," brushing against her legs and making menacing, shadowy shapes for her to jump at. For some reason, the landscape seemed darker and wilder.

In the distance, something shrieked.

After ages of slogging, she finally came upon Kamineko's hut. It looked much smaller than she remembered it; the modest structure had lost something of its presence. Chiyo knocked on the doorframe, glancing back as a Devil's Lantern meandered by through the mist.

"Get in here!" She entered, drawing in the dry, sharply herbal air. Kamineko was sprawled on his pallet, taking long, shallow breaths. He just looked like he was resting, but Chiyo could _feel_ him ebbing. A lump rose in her throat, but the elderly Jedi saw it coming. "We don't have time for that. Sit down!"

She sat.

"When I go, you'll be the only Jedi left. But listen here--you won't be the _last_ Jedi. There are…" he coughed, "…others. Other people with the potential, everywhere in the galaxy. It's up to you, Chiyo, to rebuild the Jedi Order. You're the only one that can do it… so, hey, no pressure, right?"

"Others…?" Chiyo looked like she'd had her foot run over by a semi. This was rather abrupt, after all. "Wh-who? I mean…"

"They won't be as hard to find as you're thinking. That pinwheel chick, for starters."

"Pinwheel… you mean Darth Mito?"

"Is that what Nochichi's calling her? Heh, he hasn't gotten any better at namin' them. Yeah, I mean her. She could… (cough) oh, shit. Cigar. Cigar!"

Right on cue, Chiyo withdrew a small case from her pocket and handed the precious cancer-stick over. He caught it in his razor teeth and lit the end with a spark from his claws. "Ah… even better than last time. I can now die happy…"

"But wait, what about…"

"I _said_, I can die happy!" Kamineko snapped. "Ah, there we go…" He sank deeper into the pallet. "That's the stuff. Oh… and Chiyo-chan… one last thing…" She leaned in. "Finish… finish the cigar for me… it'd be a shame for it to go to waste…"

"But- uh, the Jedi Order?"

"Oh, yeah. I have faith in you. No matter what, you…" his eyes drifted closed. The cigar slid out of his mouth and left a half-ring of ash on the blanket next to his head. Chiyo blinked back tears, kneeling to kiss his furry forehead. He faded from beneath her lips, and once more she was alone, falling across the still-warm pallet.

Kamineko's presence faded from the air, and though Dagobah was still an impossibly massive and complex stew of life, it had lost a certain spice. Suddenly, the minds of the crawling and flying creatures outside grew in prominence; Chiyo became aware of a thousand tiny, subtle things that had been eclipsed by Kamineko's charisma and power.

Including…

Chiyo rose, eyes hard and dry. No _way_.

* * *

"He's gone…" Ayumu stood atop a gnarled tree, gray cloak blending with the omnipresent mist. Though the branch beneath her feet was thin and twisted, it did not bend from her weight. All one could see clearly of her were her great, shining brown eyes, giving her the look of a lost soul. "I'm too late…"

"What are you doing here?" The Sithling waved languidly as Chiyo approached the base of her tree. She looked angry and uncertain; in a Jedi, there was no more dangerous combination. "You weren't going to attack Kamineko-sama, were you? Answer me! Mito!"

As she spoke, Ayumu walked across the narrow branch and stepped onto another. "I hoped to find him. I thought he could… help me."

"_Help _you?"

"But instead, I find you…" Ayumu stepped down to a lower branch and crouched, regarding Chiyo eerily. She had the look of a drowning woman who was too exhausted by the struggle to be anything but relieved as she sank. "The Diminutive Slayer."

Chiyo flinched. "But I didn't—I didn't do anything! The Vratix just used me as an excuse! You have to believe me!"

In the misty distance, the whatever-it-was shrieked again. "I believe you," Ayumu said sadly, and then she was sailing down towards Chiyo, violet lightsaber extended in a reverse grip. Their blades collided, but it felt strangely without impact. They slid apart as if in a dream, Ayumu skidding across the surface of Dagobah's mucky ground without sinking or even leaving a mark.

"Wait! We… we don't have to do this!" Chiyo cried.

"It's the same for you, isn't it?" Ayumu giggled.

"What's so funny?"

She tilted her head back, smiling oddly. "They're controllin' you, makin' you what you're not. You can almost _see_ the strings… I'm so glad I'm not alone." Ayumu withdrew her second lightsaber and ignited it; a crimson blade clawed over her shoulder, rippling sluggishly instead of the usual sharp crackle.

"What are you talking about?"

"When I was a little girl, I adored puppet shows." She slowly took a stance, her smile growing slightly. "I never imagined I'd get to star in one."

"Is _that_ what you think this is? Listen to me! You're-!" Once more it rained cinders, red, violet and green bursting free and drifting through the still, heavy air like snowflakes.

* * *

"It's my… Jedi intuition," Yuka said uneasily, picking her way through the moist brush. "That's what I'll tell her, yeah. She'll have to believe me. She doesn't wanna be a hypocrite, does she?"

She fingered a small blaster Kagura had given her; the soldier said that she could carry it by virtue of being a member of the _Katana_'s crew, but then had turned around and told her not to tell anyone where she'd gotten it. Fair enough.

"If I were a deranged, two-foot tall hermit, where would I live?" Yuka wondered aloud. "With my luck, he…" Then she heard the distinctive crash of two lightsabers beating together. Of course, she had never heard that sound or seen a lightsaber in action in her whole life, but it's a sound you can't mistake for anything else.

She struggled towards it, drawing her blaster and checking it the way Kagura had taught her. Come to think of it, maybe she should have practiced with it, or at least perhaps used it even once…?

Yuka pushed a towering, spiky plant, and they were there. The duel was so surreal and dreamlike she forgot to be frightened. Two indistinct figures slid silently and gracefully through the murky air, neither making a sound except for the incredible crash of their blades colliding. As the violet lightsaber was knocked from its owner's grasp, spinning over Yuka's head to vanish into the mist, she didn't even twitch.

The blaster felt like a toy in her hand. How could something so clumsy and random interfere in _that?_

Chiyo was getting tired, and she could only hope that her spectral foe was as well. The Sithling wasn't showing signs of wear--she wasn't showing anything except that damnable serene-but-frightening smile. It didn't even break her cool when the second saber was slapped from her hands and plunged sizzling into the slime at her feet.

The green saber streaked to her throat and hovered there, just kissing her skin. Ayumu closed her eyes, giggling softly. "You'd better hurry…"

"Or what?" Chiyo asked impatiently, "Look, I can beat you with one hand tied behind my back. Can't you just surrender?"

The former noble stood there for a second, as if to give Chiyo a chance to kill her… "_Honma? _Let's test that theory." Ayumu's hand rose and a shockwave burst into being between them, blowing a deep furrow in the "ground."

Chiyo screamed, staggering back as it rolled over her. It was a horrible sound, at once deep enough to rattle her bones and high enough to buzz in her teeth. She fell over backwards with a humiliating splat, head spinning, unable to breathe, pain surging through her chest and a strange feeling rising in her—

_Paff!_ Something in her artificial arm burst violently, throwing shrapnel into her. Blood sheeted from her side and spread over the swamp's slimy surface; even when the Shriek finally faded, Chiyo couldn't rise. She could only lie there, pain crackling throughout her body, breath coming out in soft sobs. Ayumu retrieved her lightsaber and stood over her without igniting it.

"Ah'm sorry, Chiyo. You're… you're better and stronger than I could ever be… it's a real shame ya couldn't… cut my strings." She raised her saber dramatically, but then blaster bolt struck her shoulder and vanished into her without even singing the cloak. She turned to regard Yuka in blank surprise.

"Wh-what?" Yuka, similarly baffled, fired again to the same effect. The Sithling glanced down at her chest, noting the laser sight jittering all over it, and then back at Yuka. She advanced slowly, keeping that awful, blank expression, clipping the lightsaber to her belt and casually snatching another bolt out of the air.

"Why… why won't you…?" Yuka was crying by the time Ayumu reached her but she was rooted in place, even as the Sithling took the blaster from her trembling grasp and gently laid a hand on the side of her head, fingers sliding through her hair. "What are you _doing_? S-stop!"

"_You leave her alone!_" Her cry was punctuated by the blinding flash and buzzing slam of a lightsaber impact. Chiyo pressed on the attack, hacking away at Ayumu's frantic guard with such fury as she had never known before. The air about her rippled as if from a heat mirage, filled with an imaginary red haze.

Ayumu tumbled back, easy grace and mellow bearing shattered. Invisible fists hammered into her stomach, chest and face, driving her stumbling through the muck. "Ch-chiyo!" One finally wrapped around her throat and slammed her sharply against a tree, pinning her as the Jedi approached.

"I have _lost_ my patience with you…" Chiyo said coldly. She raised her lightsaber one-handed and dragged her foot forward. "I _won't_ let you hurt my friends! This _ends!_"

They made eye contact. _It's not true!_ Ayumu flinched away. _She's just like… just like…!_ The green saber slashed through her and she fell without a sound, vanishing into the murk beneath them. For a few seconds, the swamp was utterly silent, every creature holding its breath.

The Jedi's eyes slid predatorily over the rolling mist at her feet—there was no doubt that if any part of her foe emerged, it would be skewered. Finally, Chiyo extinguished her lightsaber and trudged back towards Yuka, who was staring as if she'd never seen her before. "Let's… let's go, Yuka," she said, forcing her voice to be as gentle as possible. After a few seconds, the younger girl shook herself sharply and nodded.

As the Fenrir rose out of the fog and blasted towards space, a dark, miserable shape finally rose from the swamp. "Oh…" Ayumu moaned, rubbing her chest. Even though she'd managed to slide into her fourth dimension, her insides still burned and writhed where the blade had passed through. "I can't believe that really worked."

"**Come to me on Endor,**" Nochichi ordered. "**You'll soon wish it hadn't.**"


	33. Folded, Spindled and Mutilated

**32: Folded, Spindled and Mutilated**

The forests of Endor were old. They were old in a way that the inhabitants of most civilized worlds could scarcely imagine, a galactic treasure of antiquity that had stood since the days of the first Emperor. But this didn't stop the Empire from pulverizing a dozen of its mighty, unfathomably ancient trees to make space for its landing platform, which now stood as a massive gleaming insult to the forest's grandeur.

A vessel descended on whispery repulsors towards the platform; the _Dream Knife_. It was spindly, delicate and angular, almost resembling a purple metallic insect as it landed and its wings folded into their landing position. Before its engine had even cycled down fully, the canopy opened and Ayumu emerged.

She wore a light blouse, brown trousers and a wide-brimmed straw hat, perfect for the weather but totally unsuited to a Sith or a noble. The only hold those two personas had on her at the moment were in her lightsabers, gilded ceremonial hilt on one hip, sleek black weapon on the other.

"Welcome back."

She looked down in surprise, putting a hand to her hat to keep it from blowing away. The Brothers stood in a triangle on the platform beneath her, three men of wildly different build and bearing, linked only by their orange hair and soulless eyes. Though Ayumu had likened her encounter with Chiyo to a puppet show, these were beings that truly fit the label. "Hi, there," she replied pleasantly. "What brings you guys up here?"

"Lord Nochichi wanted us to see you before he did."

"Really? Why's that?"

"Mercy…" at that growled word, three red lightsabers ignited and the brothers spread out. Ayumu's hat flew away on the wind as she sat on the _Dream Knife's _folded wing and slouched to look at them.

"Because he'd break every bone in my body, huh? He must be really pissed," she said easily. "Did he tell you why, by any chance? Did any of you ask?" The brothers looked at her as if she were speaking Gamorrean. "Oh, you poor things. You don't even know how far gone…"

"Don't!" the eldest pointed up at her. "You _fear _us!"

"Is _that_ what he told you…?" Ayumu shook her head sadly. "It's not you I fear, it's what you are. It's… what Nochichi might make of me." She looked at her hands, not even appearing to notice as the two younger brothers jumped to the nose and tail of her ship and started closing in. "My thoughts and dreams are really all I have now. If I were to lose them, well... I'd want to die." Red sabers rose over her head on either side, but still she didn't stir. "Mercy… if that's what you're here for, I guess I'll have to give it to you."

* * *

Tomo and Kagura sat facing each other over a table in one of the _Mon Remonda_'s lounges, the soldier's reconciliation present sitting between them half-empty. Yomi sat in the couch next to Tomo, eyes scanning a textbook without really seeing it. Her misgivings about the Armada and its mission had blossomed into full-grown anxiety, but when she tried to confide in her partner, all it got her was a thorough taunting.

"I can't believe it…" Kagura sipped some of the ale and shook her head. "I mean, she was a little weird, but who'd have thought she was mynock-shit insane?"

"She'd never do anything like that." Tomo downed her glass and started refilling it. "She was my best friend at Livingston, and I know she wouldn't hurt a fly." When the bulb was full she downed it again.

"Haven't you had enough of that?" Yomi suggested.

"Yes," Tomo replied positively, refilling the glass yet again.

"Can't you find a more constructive way to deal with this?"

"What could be more constructive than copious amounts of ale?" Kagura asked.

Yomi looked back and forth between them. "Bonkuras," she finally said despairingly. "I'm surrounded." Instead of drinking down her latest glass, Tomo leaned against the Valerian and sighed deeply.

Chiyo entered with a mass of brown fabric over her shoulder and Yuka in tow. The powder monkey hadn't left her side since they returned from Dagobah; it wasn't clear from her bearing what Chiyo thought of this. In addition to her old moisture-farmer clothes (which seemed to be getting a little small on her), she wore a frayed, dark gray headband.

She sat at another couch in their circle and started sewing, which, even with the aid of the Force, was a difficult proposition, one-handed. (The tattered remains of her artificial arm were back on the _Katana_, being examined by Ishihara.) Yuka sat next to her with an unspoken offer to help; the Jedi smiled briefly to her but then went back to her work without accepting.

"What're you workin' on, shorty?" Kagura asked.

"Something I should've done a long time ago," Chiyo answered, holding the seam she had just made up and inspecting it critically. "I guess it just never occurred to me…"

"Really? What-?"

Before the soldier could continue, Princess Kaori came rushing up. Chiyo glanced up at her approach and nodded pleasantly, giving the distinct impression that she was supposed to be concerned by the Princess's approach and yet wasn't in the least.

"Hi, Princess!" Kagura greeted cheerfully. "Hey, it's like a party! When was the last time we were all together? I th…" she noticed that the room's vibe was a little tense and trailed off.

"I'm really sorry about the jacket," Chiyo said, "I know you and Ms. Chihiro worked hard on it… but Yuka and I had to make bandages out of _something_. I kept part of it," she added, indicating the ridiculous headband. "And now that I think of it, it makes a good symbolic-"

"Forget the damn jacket," Kaori cut her off, agitated, "Is all that stuff you said to Professor Kurosawa true?"

"Of course," the girl seemed surprised. "Why would I lie about something like that?"

"But you're… you're just…!"

Except for the despondent Tomo, the others looked between them, interested. They'd evidently missed something important. "I'm just what?" Her voice was innocent but also a little annoyed. "Am I doing anything wrong?"

"Are you doing… you _seceded _from the _Rebellion?_"

Everybody around the circle flinched in unison, except for Chiyo, who looked up from her work and nodded blandly. "Yes. I'm still helping you, though."

"But _why_?"

"Look…" Chiyo sighed and visibly took a moment to compose her thoughts. "I've just been charged with rebuilding the Jedi Order. I can't… the Order can't be subsumed by anything else, and a Jedi can't owe their allegiance to anything but the Order. The Empire is a horrible institution that needs to be removed, so for now our aims are the same."

"For now…" Kaori shook her head. "And are there any other Jedi?"

"Not really."

"So what you're saying is you only owe allegiance to yourself?"

"I never thought of it that way, but I guess so. Is there anything wrong with that?"

"Is there any… you've got so much power, though. You ought to…" Kaori floundered. "Well, I don't have any authority over you now. Just… I'd like to tell you that what you're doing now is the same arrangement that Nochichi has with the Empire."

Chiyo's eyes were suddenly cold. "_Don't_ compare me to him."

Kaori shrugged. "I've said my piece." Part of being a diplomat was knowing when to quit, after all. As soon as she was out of sight, Kagura turned and yelped, "You _what?_"

"I left. I'm not going to be a part of anyone's agenda…"

"Except your own."

Chiyo stopped and hung her head with another sigh. "That is a little dangerous, isn't it? But what would make Ms. Kaori's or even the Professor's judgment any more valid than mine?" She pulled the mass of brown fabric over her head and now stood in a simple Jedi robe. "All I can do is what seems best, right?"

With an angry huff, Tomo stood.

"Wait, Ms. Tomo, what's wrong?"

Tomo looked like she was going to leave without responding, but turned back to the young Jedi, eyes lowered. "Did you… did you have to kill her?"

"Actually…" Chiyo seemed troubled. "I'm not so sure I did."

"What?" Yuka jolted in surprise. "But-!"

"I was too angry to realize it at the time," Chiyo sat again. "But I'm beginning to think Darth Mito somehow survived. I'm not sure what to do about it, either…"

"I hope she's hurt!" Yuka said fiercely. "After what she did to you, I hope she's hurt twice as bad!"

On this point, the Jedi was even more troubled. "I wouldn't worry…"

* * *

Ayumu coughed, groggily trying to rise. She was in the middle of a huge scar on the landing deck; a network of blackened lines shaped almost like the pattern of light on the bottom of a sunlit pool. There was a perfectly Ayumu-shaped gap at its center; distantly, she wondered what the janitors would make of it.

"**You travel to Dagobah…**" a wall of Force slammed into her side, knocking her sprawling, "**Try to conspire with my mortal enemy…**" another blow struck her face before she could even move, dashing her head against the metal deck. "**Confront my daughter without my permission…**" Her arm snapped like a wet broom handle. "**Have her at your mercy, and _refrain _from killing her…**" Ayumu gasped as her organs twisted. "**And you _BOTHER COMING BACK?_**"

Purple lightning shrieked through her again for who knew how long. When the blazing agony finally faded, she stared into the sky through a haze of tears. Ah, there was a cloud that looked like a dragon… and that one kinda looked like a sea cucumber… and that-

Her throat closed. "**Are you listening to me?**"

After a moment, Ayumu whimpered an affirmative.

"**Honestly. I don't know what to do with you… though I have a _few ideas._**"

The last two words were punctuated by snapping fingers. She tried to shield herself, but not even Kamineko would be able to stand against the terror of Darth Nochichi's assault. Effortlessly reaching through her incoherent screens, he plucked her into the air and held her before his hideous mask. "Are you… are you going to kill me?" she asked weakly.

"**In a week or two,**" came the judicious reply, "**When I finally get bored.**"

"I always wondered… how ya managed anythin' when ya… kept killin' your employees."

Nochichi chuckled. The sound dunked Ayumu's spine in ice water; she seriously wished she hadn't cracked wise just then. "**That was the main reason I kept you around at first. You amused me. But then I got to thinking that you could be more than a minion, that you... _what?_**"

That last was even stranger. Nochichi was often angry and occasionally a little perplexed, but there was never a time when he wasn't completely in control of whatever situation he found himself a part of. But this exclamation was… concerned. It didn't fit him in the slightest.

They hovered there for a full minute, Ayumu hardly daring to breathe. She noted with a pang of guilt that she was dripping blood on the decking. After a while longer, though, the tension became unbearable. "Er… is… is something the matter?"

"**I felt a disturbance in the Force. Something has happened on Eddore. What were we just talking about?**"

"You were, uh, telling me to fly away and never let you see me again?" she suggested hopefully.

"**Nice try. There's been a change in plans… I must depart immediately. The Empress will have much to say and at great length, but she has no authority in this matter. You will obey her as if she was me- do you understand?**"

_So _close. "Y-yes."

"**I suspect that the Rebels will launch their foolish attack while I am away, so you will be the Empress's only line of defense against my daughter. I expect you to protect her with your life, if need be. Do not fail; you are every bit as powerful as Chiyo, in your way.**"

"But… but I can't…!"

A rough probe of the Force made her shoulder joints grind together uncomfortably. "**Silence. I find your lack of faith disturbing.**"

He dropped her to the landing platform and drifted away. As she blacked out, Ayumu reflected that even the fall killed her, the _thudsplat!_ of her body hitting the deck was entertaining enough to make it all worthwhile.

* * *

"A care package? From whom?" Chiyo took the parcel and pressed her ear to it. Nope, no ticking… "Thank you, Miru." She sat in the hangar bay at the skids of the craft she and Yuka had hijacked, gazing out at the stars.

"No problem," Miru replied, then turned to their other friend. "Hey, you're coming on duty in five minutes."

"I'll be right there," Yuka replied, not moving. When she finally decided to, it would be an awkward time; Maya had declared her lap his sovereign territory. She scratched his ears on autopilot, not even noticing his soft purring.

Chiyo unwrapped the package as Miru left, conscientiously reading the card before looking at what was within. "Dear Ms. Mihama," she read aloud, "I heard about your secession yesterday- very brave! It makes me sad that you'll never be able to come work for me, though. Enclosed are a few books I thought you would enjoy, some cookies my Aunt made (simply tremendous!), and a surprise. Love, Mako Spince."

"The crimelord?" Yuka squeaked. "And he didn't send a bomb?"

"I don't think he'd…" Chiyo had carefully removed the contents- a few books and cookies as promised, along with a lump of something that looked like- "YAAAHHH!" She chucked it out through the mag-con field into space, where it exploded silently.

"Told you," Yuka quavered.

Chiyo leaned back on the skid and shook her head. "Very nice."

* * *

"Damn. Just up and left," Garus said. The old guardsman didn't look at home in his dark day uniform, but under the helm and mantle, he was as intimidating as a man half his age and twice his height. "But I guess our jobs still aren't too hard here."

"Sure," Tarvis nodded absently. "Her Majesty's on the most powerful Battlestation in existence, surrounded by twelve-hundred stormtroopers and half the fleet. I'd say there's not much for us to do."

"So why do you go courting death, then?" Garus asked impatiently. "You'll never live to see my age at this rate."

The two men came to a halt at Medical Ward Seventeen, submitting to retinal scans before being admitted. It was mostly empty; there would probably never be a time when the _Death Star_'s hundred and fifty wards all saw use, knock on wood. "I'm not courting death, you old badger!" Tarvis replied, just as impatient. "I'm just volunteering to help someone… who's _very_ important to the security of the Empress, by the way… get through bacta disorientation. After spending so long in that stuff, she won't know which way is up!"

"She's not like she was before…" Garus said fearfully, "Did you see what happened to the Brothers? She hacked one of 'em right in two! The only reason the youngest is still barely clinging to life is that Nochichi showed up when he did!"

"If you don't have anything helpful to say, shove off."

One room within the ward had a row of five bacta tanks, but only one was filled with the turquoise fluid, its occupant curled tightly into a ball at its center. Looking at Ayumu there, so small and vulnerable, it was hard to imagine that she was capable of harming anything, let alone routing the rebels of Borleas, slaughtering two dozen Vratix warriors and fighting "the Prodigy," that feared and reviled Rebel agent, to a standstill.

"You're just in time," the doctor said, "She should be waking up any time now."

"That's what you said when I came a half-hour ago," Tarvis pointed out dryly.

"This one's a little slow, I guess. Oh… there, here she comes."

Huge brown eyes opened heavily. Ayumu unfolded slowly and kicked towards the top of the tank, accepting the hand of an attendant on the tank's platform. The woman lifted her out easily and helped her into a white robe, tying the belt when the still sluggish Sithling proved unable. After a moment to regain her balance, she thanked the attendant and climbed unsteadily down.

Scars… an instant before the robe fell over her, Tarvis noted that her pale skin was crisscrossed with angry pink lines. What kind of scars didn't fade after hours of bacta treatment? And worse, the lighter ghosts of similar marks ran between them. What in the galaxy had happened to her?

"I'm glad you're out, Lady Mito," the doctor said, "You had us worried, there."

"Mito…" Ayumu shook her head, spattering them with turquoise droplets from her hair. "It wasn't a dream, then… shoot…"

"This gentleman volunteered to help you through your disorientation."

Ayumu's eyes lit up. "Corporal! You didn't die!"

"Huh?" the guardsmen glanced at each other in confusion.

"Oh… sorry… I, uh, I thought you were someone else." She scrubbed her eyes vigorously. "Thanks for coming, Tarvis."

"Sorry I wasn't who you were hoping for."

"That's okay," Ayumu put a hand to her newly healed arm and smiled a little. "I'm just glad to be _bacta_ normal."

Tarvis laughed out loud. "I told you! She hasn't changed a bit."

* * *

"But have I?" Ayumu wondered later, washing her hands in preparation to head down to the mess. An old bar of fragrant soap from Thyferra slid between her fingers, the scent filling her with nostalgia. "I'm a totally different person than I was… oops!"

The soap squirted out of her hands, and her frantic efforts to catch it only made it jump higher and higher. Finally it shot up out of her reach and slapped against the ceiling. Focusing herself, Ayumu shot out a hand towards it and caught it in a vice-like grip of the Force. (Her telekinetic abilities were up to such a small, simple task.)

"Ha!" she crowed. As if it had heard her, the soap shot out of her Force grip and out the door, ricocheting down the hall until somebody in the distance yelled, "Ahh! My leg!"

"S-sorry!" Ayumu cried, rushing after. Perhaps she hadn't changed as much as she'd thought.

* * *

"An anonymous letter?" Kaori accepted the envelope and turned it over in her hands. "How does mail even find us here?"

"Oh, there's a system," the courier answered readily. "First, the letters…"

"You don't have to explain it to me. Thank you, carry on."

The courier nodded and rushed off. After a moment to inspect the envelope, she withdrew the letter and started in on it. "My Dearest Kaorin," she read to herself, "I hope this letter finds you well. I'm writing to make a confession that…" Her eyes scanned down the rows of neat handwriting in mounting horror. "…in short, I love you. Signed… Grand Moff K…"

Kaori sat staring at the letter for a very long time, eye twitching. Her intercom buzzed. "Princess? I have a-" her secretary started.

"AAAARRRRRRGGGHH!" she tore the letter into tiny pieces and threw it all over the room.

"I'll tell them to come back later."

* * *

Incredibly, the Empress's throne room had been reproduced wholesale in the _Death Star_. It was hard to imagine a more frivolous waste of resources, but it was pretty nice to stand in there and pretend that you weren't on a Battlestation in the cold depths of space.

Ayumu sat on the shoulder of Emperor Tanizaki I's statue, going through a short stack of mail that had piled up over her recuperation. Most of it was the usual; fawning letters by schemers who hoped to sway her one way or the other, form letters to important nobles, a bill for her treatment, thoughtfully waived…

But there _was_ one item of interest- a rather fat envelope from the _Chimera_, an Imperial vessel currently plunging into the Unknown Regions in a war of conquest. It had been written in a cipher based on her collected poems, which was a little embarrassing, as it was her fervent hope that nobody actually read the thing.

_Dear Lady Mito,_

_News comes that you are having difficulty dealing with your opposite number. While I have every confidence in your ability, enclosed is information that you may find useful. I had been holding the knowledge of Myrkyr and its creatures for my own use, but it seems you may have greater need._

_Your Friend and Colleague,_

_Mitth'raw'nuruodo_

_PS: Concerning the fourth poem; there is no logical connection between panties and blasters. Why did you even try?_

She stared at the name for a moment, then slowly drew a circle around the middle so that it read Mit(th'ra'wn)uruodo. "Thank you, Grand Admiral," Ayumu said, pleased with her discovery. The enclosed document was a zoology report about a race of creatures called Ysalimir, which she read cover to cover.

"Is she allowed to be up there?" a stormtrooper asked quietly on the floor below.

"Do you want to be the one to tell her she isn't?" another replied.

* * *

"I'm a busy man," Matsuyama said in clipped syllables, "Impress me."

Yomi cleared her throat uneasily. The Intelligence officer sympathized a little; he knew the feeling well. Her friend, evidently dragged along for moral support, sat in the corner of his office, looking bored. Matsuyama didn't like having bored people in his office. They were a security risk.

"This is all monumentally stupid," Yomi finally said.

"Oh?"

"Why does the _Death Star_ even exist? You don't need a moon-sized Battlestation that sucks the energy out of stars to destroy planets. All you need is a fleet of ships that cost a tenth as much, or one good Von Neumann machine… heck, a great big rock would work just fine."

"Um…"

"I'm not done! It's the most stupid thing you can imagine! Why do you want to destroy a planet instead of taking it? Two or three metanukes could remove the military presence from any world you want. And it's not like the Rebellion is dumb enough to put its bases on isolated worlds that the Empire would have no problem nuking, jungle moons and crap like that, right?"

"Well, actually…"

"The _Death Star_ isn't even good as a symbol! What does the Empire need with yet another symbol of terror and oppression? And they're building the damn thing in _secret!_ What was the official line?"

"Hideki Yukari II Research Institute," Matsuyama said tiredly, "Tragically destroyed in the solar flare that consumed Alderaan."

"I thought it was something retarded like that… You know what the _Death Star _really is?"

He hissed through his teeth. "Enlighten me."

"It's a great big god-damned galactic 'kick-me' sign! I can't think of a more blatantly obvious trap!"

"You don't know…"

Yomi pounded a fist on the desk. "Mark my words- they have half their fleet waiting around that station, and it'll swallow this little armada like nothing! All these starry-eyed idealists and reckless smugglers and brave soldiers are going to _die! _For _nothing!_"

"I'll talk to Ms. Kurosawa, but what else do you expect us to do?"

"I don't know… but you'd better figure it out."

* * *

(A/N: Thanks to Section 8 for the care-package idea and pointing me to the "How to Destroy Earth" website. Whee!) 


	34. Calm Before

**33: Calm Before**

Chiyo stood on a frozen plain, gazing into a night sky shot through with auroras of indescribable colors. A thousand tiny glittering specks covered it; the mighty Rebel Armada, a sight that should have been inspiring but left her cold. But then, perhaps that was just the hellish, frigid wind that howled over her bundled-up form.

Long ago, before any of this, she had dreamed of this sky.

After long seconds of contemplation, she stripped her thick mask off and drew a deep breath of the frozen air. A sharp pain stabbed through her chest from the change in temperature, but for some reason it felt wonderful. Next to go were goggles; her wide mahogany eyes watered up but the tears froze to her temples almost instantly.

Acting on momentum, she unzipped her enormous coat from the inside and let it slough off into the snow, joining her thick mitts and cap. She stepped out of her heavy boots and snow-pants, wincing as her light shoes chuffed into the snow. Finally, she pulled her sweater over her head and was left standing on the field of ice in just a tank-top and light trousers.

Chiyo drew her lightsaber and ignited it, banishing the auroras and the fleet from her vision. The Force filled her with energy and warmth as she brought the blade in a wide arc over her head, the beginning of a basic saber form. Forgetting the blood-freezing cold, the young Jedi sprang lightly through the steps of her form, weaving a maze of green light through the crisp air.

Over time, the girl vanished from herself and there was only the shrieking wind, the whirling dance and the Force. She was exhilarated and soaring and, for the first time since she had destroyed the _Implacable,_ felt… _clean._ Flushed and laughing exultantly, Chiyo let the elements scour her away.

* * *

Yukari's eyes opened on the ceiling above her huge, soft four-poster. The bed chamber was much smaller and utilitarian than her room in the Imperial Palace, but the bed made up for it. Digital numbers burned by the bedside read 2:32… so why had she awakened? And she'd been sleeping so much easier since that creepy little waif had taken off for Myrkyr…

A violet lightsaber ignited less than two feet from the foot of her bed.

"WAAUGH!" The Empress shot to the head, clutching bedclothes to her chest. "Mito! What the hell are you doing here?"

"I'm back," Ayumu said with an eerie, purple-lit smirk. "Just thought you should know." The room was once more plunged into darkness and the Sithling left silently. After a few minutes and a shot of something illegal to let her heat rate return to normal, the Empress lay back down and started plotting her revenge.

* * *

"So then," Miru commented loudly, "This idiot goes capering around down there without any gear and wonders why she's feeling a little under the weather."

"It was w-w-worth it," Chiyo said stubbornly. She was wrapped in a heavy blanket and held a mug of hot chocolate in trembling hands. At least three boxes of tissue stood by around her as she worked with Maya sprawled across her lap, adding another layer of warmth. "I g-guess you h-h-had to be there."

"Are you kidding?" Miru hopped the back of her couch and sat next to her. "It's bloody _cold_ down there!"

"Did you j-just get off duty?"

"Yeah. Yuka'll be free in an hour or so. So these're all the journals you took from Kamineko's place?"

Amid the boxes of tissue there were five battered, aged, handwritten books. Chiyo took one up and nodded. "Yes… he kept journals of all his experiences training… gee, must be thirty, thirty-five Jedi."

"How do you know he wanted you to have them?" Chiyo indicated one of the volumes, which had _'take these, you ungrateful little jerk'_ written in marker on its cover. "Oh. But isn't it a little early to be thinking about training new Jedi?"

"Well, r-reading these helps to steady me."

"Steady you? You look pretty steady to me…"

Chiyo gave a small smile. "It's working, then."

"Well… I'll leave you to it. Sabbac game with the other powder monkeys in ten minutes." Miru stood. "Want to eat with me and Yuka at six?"

"Sure, I'll s-see you then."

_3/9/70_

_This new student is driving me up the wall! She's so quiet and sensitive, and takes everything so seriously! Just yesterday I had to explain to her that Mace wasn't yelling at her, that's just how he talks. I just can't believe this is Sakaki's kid! I was expecting another brash, fun-loving idiot like Mihama…_

Chiyo turned a page of the battered journal with a warm giggle. It was hard to imagine what kind of environment Dagobah must have been with a Master and three full Jedi studying together, wrangling over the instruction of a single student. Poor Sakaki.

_3/11/70_

_Nanashi thinks I'm cute. Where on Dagobah did _that_ come from? "Look," I said to her, "I might have been cute three-hundred years ago, but now you're just insulting me!" She looked so disappointed… what am I going to do with this kid? The talent's there, and she has a damn fine singing voice besides, but as it is, she just doesn't have the drive to become a Master. I'm considering packing her off to Delnor when she's old enough, but I'm not sure…

* * *

_

"First time reporting to the Empress since Nochichi left," Tarvis commented. "Are you nervous, Ayumu?"

"Nah," she replied casually. "After the Dark Lord of the Sith, she ain't nothin'."

"I, uh, I wouldn't say that so loud…" Garus said nervously on her other side.

Tarvis glanced at her oddly; her good cheer seemed forced, but he had learned from Nochichi that personal feelings weren't a good subject to bring up with Sith. ("Are you angry?") The three of them rounded a corner, coming to the huge, tacky double doors that led into the reproduced throne-room.

"Yo," the motionless Imperial Guardsman said when he noticed her.

"_Maido_," Ayumu greeted, passing him unhesitatingly and pushing aside one of the gilded doors to enter. Yukari stood before her throne, talking to the two Intelligence guys that had taken over since Matsuyama left. "Oh, you're just in time!" the Empress called with an evil glint in her eyes. "I was just explaining to these gentlemen how I wanted them to deal with Kurosawa! Come on up here."

Ayumu approached gamely and stood next to the Empress.

"It's Thyferran stand-up time! Okay, let's say you just caught her, okay? Darth Mito here is Kurosawa."

"I'm Kurosawa."

"Here's what I want you to do…" Yukari withdrew a rolled-up magazine from behind her back, clubbed Ayumu to the ground and then followed her down, bludgeoning away. "You got nothing, Kurosawa! NOTHING! We got you good, you loser! Ha!"

"Waugh! Hey! Ow!" The demonstration turned out to take much longer than was strictly necessary.

"Uh…" Shiro glanced at his partner. "Do we… um, interrogate her at any point?"

Yukari kept flailing with the magazine as she glanced up. "No, a savage beating will do nicely. Well… sure, if you find the time, see what you can find out."

The Intelligence guys looked at each other and shrugged. "As you command, my Empress," Kenichi said formally.

"You'd best," Yukari replied, standing and flattening the magazine against her stomach. "You're dismissed."

As they left, Ayumu rose and took her customary place next to the throne. Then, after a moment of consideration, she hopped up and squatted on its back like a gargoyle. The Empress didn't seem to notice the extra dose of creepiness though. "Yes, Mito," Yukari pontificated, "The day of reckoning between myself and that filthy traitor is at hand! She will bow before Yukari, Empress of the Universe…!"

The younger woman looked up through the crystalline windows, admiring the stars. She fancied that there were martial artists that would envy her ability to unhinge herself from the moment. While the Empress blathered on, her mind wandered free, dwelling on the beauty of the crystal and stars, free of the uncertain future, the horrible past and…

"What do you think, Mito?"

Crap! Ayumu wracked her memory but what Yukari had said not five seconds before just wasn't there. What was an appropriately Sith-y thing to say…? "At last, we will have our revenge," she ventured, in a deep, menacing voice.

Yukari nodded approvingly and looked away. Whew! "By the way, there's a change of plans. Don't kill Mihama- I want to corrupt her to the dark side and have her as a minion!"

"Um, but… you're not…"

"Don't worry! We can pull this off! What better way to show Nochichi we don't need him, eh?"

Ayumu swallowed. Her coming confrontation with the Prodigy was already as frightening as all-get-out, but this was just _ridiculous_. "Ah'll…" she shook her head. "I'll do my best."

* * *

"Yesterday, the 181st Super Valkyrie Wing attacked our holdings over Byss. Before our defenses finally repelled them, they dropped Giant Killers on the _Tachikaze_, the _Van Halen_ and the _Gorgon_ as well as destroying twenty-three of our Valkyries." Matsuyama slapped his pointer into an open hand and faced the assembled admirals and executives. "This is only the latest in a string of attacks against peripheral elements of the Armada. Since the Armada has started mustering, we've lost eight cruisers and over a hundred fighters."

There was some uneasy shifting in their ranks.

"Further, we've been getting rumblings of mutiny right here over Hoth. People are starting to figure out that the Imperials are bound to be waiting for us. If we don't move quickly, we're going to see a mass revolt of the smugglers and privateers."

"Haven't you dealt with that Mizuhara woman?" an Admiral near the front asked.

"I'm… trying to, yes. It's not as easy, here. In an Imperial fleet, we would have just spaced her and been done with it. And while she was the first, she's not the only one who's causing trouble now. I propose that we surprise the Empire and ignore Endor." More shifting. "With the fleet we have here, and with theirs concentrated around the _Death Star_, we could take any world we want. Maybe even Coruscant."

"Well now, the idea holds merit."

"Yes, they wouldn't be expecting it."

"Unpredictability is an asset…"

"_No._" Everybody in the room turned towards Kurosawa where she sat near the front of the lecture hall, straight in her chair, hands folded and expression hard. "The target is Endor. Nothing changes."

"But Professor…" Matsuyama started.

"The Empress herself is there. Now. As we speak." Kurosawa paused to make sure she had everyone's attention. She needn't have; they were hardly daring to breathe. "We have a chance to end this in one stroke. The _Death Star_ might be a trap, but the bait is too good for us to pass up. I have contingency plans in place for whatever Kimura might have in store for us."

"You're, um, not letting a personal vendetta cloud your judgment, are…" at the Professor's look, he quailed.

* * *

"But Yomiiii…!" Tomo whined.

"But Yomi what? You're not going to 'But Yomi' me into anything, this time," Yomi growled, stuffing clothes into her duffel. "There's not a single thing you can say that will convince me to stay here with these idiots and fly into a mountain with them! Don't even try to tell me the cause is worth it! We're going."

"Well, I was just going to say that they'll blast you if you try to leave," Tomo said, sprawling across the bed next to Yomi and looking up at her. "Stupid."

"I'll figure it out. What am I supposed to do? It's suicide to stay!"

"You sure don't have a lot of faith in us."

"In us… the Rebels are _us_ now, are they? Since when did we become Rebels, Tomo?"

"Well, I don't know about you…" Tomo rolled away from her and looked out the room's window. (Though they were deep within the ship, the miracle of holography gave them a view of the outside.) "But _I _think it's worthwhile. Yomi… the Empire is _bad_."

Yomi chuckled bitterly at her childlike conviction. "No shit. It's so bad that we should fly out and get blasted by them?"

"We have to try!"

"Do we, now? I don't get you, Tomo! How can you be so… so… quixotic?"

"And I don't get you! Why are you so damn cynical?"

"Cynical? It's not cynical to not jump off a cliff because everyone else is! You're such an imbecile! I swear, if not for the life debt…"

Tomo threw her hands in the air. "I release you."

"_What?_"

"Are you deaf, you half-witted, scrawny freak? I release you! Forget the life-debt! Go your own way if you're too spineless to see this through!" By this point, Tomo was standing on the bed, yelling, red-faced. "It would be _just like you!_ You're always running scared! You were running scared when we met and you're running scared now! Well, this time you can do it without me!"

"Oh, really?" Yomi leaned in close to the smaller woman. "Two things. One, I was indeed running scared when we met… I was running from a five-hundred kilo death machine! If you had even a gram of common sense, you would realize that it was the only natural reaction!"

"That…!"

"And two: was I running scared when I came back with the others to save you from Spince?"

Tomo was stricken. Yomi continued to pack as she groped for words, and was just leaving when she finally managed to speak. "I'm s-sorry! Yomi, I didn't mean…"

"Forget it. You never mean anything you say, Tomo," the Valerian sounded more sad than angry. "I… am thoroughly, thoroughly sick of your crap. Your immaturity, your screechy voice, your selfishness, your… ugh, so you've released me? Awesome. Have a great life."

"Yomi! I-!" The Valerian turned on her heel and left with her bag over her shoulder. "Hey! I'm sorry, okay? Will you…" And the door hissed shut. Tomo stared after her for long seconds, biting her lip. "Fine," she finally said, her thick, strangled voice betraying that it was anything but.

* * *

How could you tell if a Sith was distressed? Try as he might to pierce Ayumu's cardboard good cheer, he still had no more idea what was going on with her than before. And really, as the simple Guardsman assigned to her, psychoanalysis wasn't in his job description anyway. In the end, he decided to just roll with it.

"So how was Myrkyr?" Tarvis asked as they disembarked. The deck had been cleaned, but he imagined he could still see the weirdly-shaped scorch marks. A sweet, warm wind rushed through the trees and ruffled their hair.

"It's a nice planet," Ayumu replied dreamily. "No strings."

No… strings? He had honestly expected her to complain about how a planetload of Ysalimir cut her off from the Force. What could she mean by this? Before he could ask, she continued. "And to get the Ysalimir, we worked with this smuggler guy named Talon Karrde."

"Never heard of him."

They mounted the turbolift and started down; Ayumu glanced at it distrustfully, but didn't slow her narrative. "Talon-chan has a great sense of humor. He laughed at all my jokes, and do you know what his flagship is called?"

"What?"

Ayumu giggled. "The _Wild Karrde_. And his yacht is the _Uwanna Buyer_."

"Oh, God."

"He was so good to his employees, too… I'd love to join his outfit some day."

"You're the Empress's Hand, though. How would you ever end up working for a guy like him?"

"I can dream, can't I?"

_Can you ever,_ Tarvis thought to himself, but settled for saying, "Sure." After they disembarked at the landing platform's base, it was a short walk through the cluster of bunkers to the appointed area. A dozen men were already waiting around a little-used picnic table, looking doubtfully at their caged Ysalimir. One was poking his with a stick, but stopped before the duo drew near.

Each Ysalimir was a long, sinuous creature with a wooly coat. They clung to nutrient frames in their cages with stubby little legs that ended in barbed claws, looking slowly about with wizened faces that could have been designed by Dr. Seuss. Though they didn't appear to be anything remarkable, to a Force user they could be the most dangerous creatures in God's green galaxy.

Ayumu looked among the assembled stormtroopers, then, not liking the height ratio, hopped up onto the picnic table and raised her hands. "Ahem! Thanks for coming, guys. If you will please listen carefully."

The men stopped what they were doing and listened respectfully.

"Okay. First things, first. To get your Ysalimir off of his nutrient frame, you have to take him by the end of his tail and pull gently." She gestured for them to try it, and they did. After a few seconds, one raised his hand.

"Yeah?"

"I, uh, I think mine's dead."

"Dead…?" Ayumu asked dangerously. She jumped down and walked towards him slowly. "Dead? You didn't pull him off right, did you? You didn't take him by the tail, did you? I said you had to take him off by the tail, didn't I? _Didn't I?_"

"S…sorry?"

She had reached him by this point, and reached up to grab his lapel. "You, suh, need to learn how to listen when other people talk! Next time you…!" And then all at once she shook her head, shedding her anger instantly. "I can't do anything hideous to you this close to the Ysalimir anyway, can I? Tell ya what, I'll give the little guy a decent burial and we'll get you a new one, okay?"

"Y…yes, ma'am. Thank you, ma'am."

Ayumu started back towards her table with the dead Ysalimir over her shoulder. "Back, up, willya? They're starting to bug me," she said. The soldiers obediently moved away, still trying to coax their Ysalimir off the frames. Just as the last bubble of Force dampening cleared her, a blaster bolt streaked out of the forest and smacked into her temple.

"Eyyaugh!" She dropped like a sack of potatoes, clutching the side of her head. "Ow! Ow!" A dozen Ysalimir cages clattered to the ground as the men drew their blasters and searched the trees tensely. Tarvis jumped onto the table and crouched between her and whoever was shooting, wishing he'd brought his ablative vest.

Ayumu rose behind him and leaned heavily on his shoulder, still holding a hand over her temple. "That was lucky," she commented lightly.

"Get down!"

"Which one of us is blaster-proof?"

"But you're hurt!"

"Have you ever absorbed a blaster bolt through your forehead?"

"Uh, no…"

"You should try it some time." She stared into the trees and her eyes unfocused, drifting slowly over the foliage. "Ah. There you are."

"I don't see any-"

"Shh…"

Ayumu reached over his other shoulder and a Force Shriek rolled softly out. Before her splayed fingers, branches blasted to splinters, leaves shredded and chunks blew out of boles. The shockwaves weakened as they got farther away, until finally vanishing at about thirty meters.

An undeniably feline yowl of pain and surprise reached their ears, followed by the _paff!_ of a blaster's power cells bursting. Several of the stormtroopers rushed towards the sound, but Ayumu threw her hand out to stop them.

"Let him go. You'll just run into a bunch of their traps if ya chase him. Now, where were we…?" she turned back and noticed the strewn cages with a look of dismay. "_Gently_, guys! Man…"

* * *

Yomi sat alone in the cockpit of the _Silver Rose_. Her hands hovered over the controls, itching to start their well-practiced routine. She'd calculated that the _Rose_ could manage 1.39 the speed of a Seraph, so the patrols shouldn't be a significant problem. She cared little for the chaos her departure would cause; she just wanted _out_.

So why didn't she move? Every word she'd said to Tomo was true. It would be suicide to stay. Tomo would be insufferable if she returned.

But… it wasn't just about her and Tomo anymore, was it? There was Chiyo-chan now, and Kagura, and even the Princess. Try as she might, Yomi couldn't convince herself that she didn't owe them more than just cutting out now.

And besides, the thought of blasting off into space and flying for hours alone, in such _silence_…

"Well, shit," she sighed.


	35. Interlude 2: Rockem Sockem Ideologies

**Interlude Two – Rock 'em, Sock 'em Ideologies**

Young Koyomi Mizuhara was bright, confident and ready to take on the galaxy. As one of the top cadets of the Imperial Academy's small campus on Ordos, she was the first in her class to get a temporary posting as Third Lieutenant. She'd secretly hoped that it would be some assignment that would take proper advantage of her Valerian strength, but it seemed that the faculty had instead decided to take advantage of her intelligence, looks and natural eloquence by sending her with one of the Academy's many recruitment drives to disaffected worlds.

Getting up in front of auditoriums full of ear-picking, unmotivated college kids (at least, that's how they seemed to her after a few blistering years as a military cadet) and telling them about how the Imperial Academy had changed her life wasn't always particularly rewarding, but it was at least nice to imagine that her efforts might bring some disillusioned, meandering youth to what she had found.

Of course, some worlds and campuses were more difficult than others. Take, for example, the Livingston Space Academy on Atredes. This pastoral world was a center of art, learning, culture and industry, home to hordes of exactly the sort of intelligent, discerning young people that a discriminating Academy like hers was looking for. There was a bit of a hitch, however…

"Thank you, Mrs. Mizuhara," the professor said, not sounding thankful in the least. Yomi stood at the base of a lecture hall, surrounded by rank after rank of students staring _murder _at her. Lieutenant Ogawa, her constant companion and mentor on this harrowing assignment, stood in the back, leaning casually on the doorframe. The professor sat at his desk to her right, showing his restraint and civility by just staring assault-and-battery at her. "She will now take your questions," he added.

There was a long, awkward pause, but before Yomi could sigh in relief and call it a lecture, two or three hands rose. She picked out the one that had gone up most decisively and pointed. "Yes?"

"So, apart from the courses you mentioned," its owner, a young man with bleached-blond hair and an angry bearing, asked, "Does this Academy of yours also offer training in destroying civilizations and exterminating civilian populations?"

Yomi felt a flash of anger, but long practice didn't allow it to show. "That's… that's hardly a fair question," she replied. "And why in the Galaxy would you want learn to do things like that anyway?"

"Don't ask me, I'm not a tool of the Empire."

"No, you seem to have more in common with the local Rebels. Are you also interested in courses on blowing up dams and power plants?" she countered tartly.

"At least they're standing up to _you_."

"And they're doing it by standing on _your_ neck. Or… wait, Livingston has its own generator, doesn't it? You've been mostly insulated from the rebels here. I imagine that's the reason you can support them." She was going to continue, but Ogawa cleared his throat, indicating that she'd gone too far. Without missing a beat, Yomi turned on her toes and pointed to another hand. "In the back?"

This was a thin woman with wide, light brown eyes. She hadn't been staring with hostility like her classmates, but rather with a fascination that bordered on the perverse. "Are you _really_ a Valerian?"

Yomi's face twitched. "Yes. Yes, I am. Why would I lie about that?"

"You look too scrawny to be a Valerian."

"I'm smaller than most of my countrymen," Yomi agreed testily. "Is this germane?"

"Well, obviously I'm testing to see if we can trust you."

"You can trust me on _that_."

"Sure doesn't look like it. Can you sing the Valerian Planetary Anthem, then?"

"I can't sing very well, no."

"You don't look like a singer." Yomi found the condescending way she said that far more infuriating than she should have. "But how do we know you're a Valerian?"

"You can't take my word for it?"

"Of _course _not! Here--lift the professor's desk over your head. That should prove…"

"I will do no such thing!"

"Ooh, you sound mad. You gonna blast me now, Ms. Imperial?" A few of the students laughed. "Isn't that how it works with you people?"

"Of course not! Asking questions, even annoying ones, isn't a blasting offense."

"C'mon, give me your best shot!"

"For the last time, no!"

"Darn," the professor sighed, eliciting a few more laughs. "Almost got rid of you, Takino."

"Oh, well, better luck next time!" she said brightly, and threw herself down in the seat, hooking her scrawny legs over the row in front of her. "I'm sure one of the other speakers will shoot me!"

There was only one more hand in the air, so Yomi pointed to it and said a prayer in her heart. The student stood respectfully, a girl with thoughtful green eyes and short, sandy hair. "The Empire may well take good care of the people of this planet," she said, "And it may have done wonderful things for your people, but what about other worlds and other peoples? No matter how much it helps you, would you be justified in supporting an entity that would, say, brutally pacify neutral worlds or depopulate whole cities with nerve agents?"

"_That_ is a good question!" Yomi congratulated. Actually, that question would have been irritating anywhere else, but at a school like Livingston she could only be relieved that the asker was being polite and reasonable. "Well, there are two answers. First, the Empire is such a vast institution that it probably means very different things to people on different worlds. Do the soldiers liberating Delgon have anything to do with a police action on Chandrilla?"

"I suppose not, but when you sign on, you have no say over where you are posted and no idea what you may be ordered to do, is that right?"

"That's right, but my other answer is this: the Empire does _not_ stand for murdering and imprisoning innocent civilians or obliterating the infrastructures of civilized worlds. If I were ordered to take part in such missions, I would rebel my_self_. In the end, every officer who enlists is responsible for their own actions."

"Is that so?" Ogawa asked lightly, stepping off of the wall. Yomi jumped; when the audience was receptive he would sometimes step up to banter with her, but she wasn't expecting it here.

"Yes, sir!" Yomi said proudly. "I would never take part in such a heinous enterprise!"

"Really."

"It's a… a bit of a non-issue anyway, isn't it? We won't receive any orders like that, after all."

"Of course not. But you should be more careful in your speech."

"I will. So, we have time for one last question. Anyone? Yes?"

"I was just wondering…" a fellow with long brown hair suddenly laughed and lowered his head. "Never mind, I was going to be a dick and try to provoke you, but there's no reason to be mean to you personally, is there?"

"None whatever," Yomi agreed.

"Huh… well, sorry, whoever's question I wasted."

* * *

Atredes was just far enough from their campus on Ordos that the Holonet couldn't transmit a proper image, especially with the absurd amounts of encryption their Headmaster insisted on. Ogawa found himself sitting before a swirling blob of static, stance deferential in spite of the fact that his superior couldn't see it. "It turns out that you were absolutely correct, Headmaster. She is useless to us."

"_You've seen the end of her loyalty, then? Surely not so soon!_"

"I saw that her loyalty has no end… but it is to the ideal Empire that exists in her mind, not to the Empire as it truly exists. Likewise, she is loyal to the Ogawa she thinks she sees, not to the man I am. This delusion she reveres is incompatible with our objectives. Now, she could be fortunate and have a long, successful career in the Navy, or…"

"_Or she could be unfortunate and executed for treason. Or worse, run afoul one of our special projects._"

"Yes. I confess I had taken a bit of a shine to her…"

"_That is a bad habit of yours._"

"She could have been helpful to us. She's very sharp. Whether or not we choose to include her in our own concerns, she will be valuable to the Empire as an officer, assuming she does something about her ethics."

"_That very intelligence makes her dangerous to us. I always found her activities in my Academy… suspect, and your experiment has done nothing to ease my mind. Ogawa, I need you to take one of our contractors and deal with her before you leave Atredes._"

"We can't just forget about taking her in and let her go on her way?"

"_You know that isn't the Ordos way. You should not have begun to induct her if you weren't sure of her heart. You have already given her weapons against us, hidden in your teachings, and she will uncover them if she is as brilliant as you say._"

"We could send her to another Imperial Academy. I feel you are being paran… overly cautious, Headmaster."

"_Paranoia is how we have survived these hundreds of years. Even Tanizaki's Empire, as despicable as we find it, would waste no time in crushing us if they discovered our activities, so even the smallest risk is completely unacceptable. It is as true now as it was under Emperor Isamu the Just. I command you to eliminate Koyomi Mizuhara._"

"But—!" Ogawa started, but the connection had already been cut.

* * *

"What a lousy bunch of…!" Yomi growled, striding angrily down a back street. She wore a long gray jacket and nondescript clothes, but she was sure that the fine people of Atredes would be able to see her for an (almost) Imperial officer anyway. "Stupid, complacent… sitting all cozy and protected in their little campus while…"

The sky was a dusty orange-brown, glowing with the light of sunset (about ten hours earlier than Yomi's internal clock was comfortable with.) Hot, uneven wind whipped through the narrow streets, matching her mood perfectly. The streetlights were out; she hadn't been kidding about the power plant's destruction.

Hunger clawed at the insides of her belly, but she was too frustrated to eat at the moment. Ever since coming to Atredes, Yomi had had a harder time controlling her emotions for some reason. It probably had something to do with being shown the extent of the Rebels' depredations soon after landing; for all of her sneering at the Livingston students, she hadn't experienced very much in the way of terror and violence, either.

_Thump._

Yomi stopped in her tracks, a horrible icy feeling prickling on her scalp and down her neck. It had just occurred to her that there were no pedestrians on the street around her. This was an ethnic neighborhood of some kind—the buildings were faceless stone, windows shuttered tightly against the wind and addresses labeled in a language she'd never seen before. Where was everyone? It wasn't _that_ late, was it?

_Thud._ The pavement shook slightly under her feet.

"Who's there?" Yomi asked sharply.

_Thud. _Again, closer.

Yomi turned slowly, reaching for a sidearm that she wasn't carrying. Advancing down the street towards her was… was… what the heck _was _it? It was a grotesquely huge humanoid, even larger than a Valerian, hunched over and covered in shining ebon armor, the sinister red point of a cylon-style visor tracking back and forth across its kabuto-shaped face. With one more terrifying _thud_, it came to a stop before her and regarded her stonily.

"What… who are you?" Yomi asked, taking an unsteady step back.

"Don't you know who I am!?" Though it had been ponderous and robotic in its approach, it suddenly showed great animation, lurching back from her in shock and spreading its arms. "I'm the Sombra, bitch! Don't _tell _me you never heard of me!"

"I've never…" she backed up a little further, casting a nervous look about the empty street. Somewhere far behind her, she could hear sneakers beating the pavement, but she couldn't make herself turn away from this monster. "Is there, is there any particular reason you're walking up behind me on a mostly abandoned street?"

"I was planning to sneak up and decapitate you, but it turns out that weighing as much as I do doesn't help much with that."

"Decapitate-!?"

"I'm a bounty hunter." The Sombra leaned forward. "Are you _sure_ you never…?"

"But what did _I _ever do?"

"No idea." A long, slender-barreled weapon unfolded from its right forearm and a blue laser sight appeared on her forehead. "But Ogawa always pays, so don't think I'll let you off."

"O-Ogawa!? Why would he--?"

"Hurts, don't it?" Perhaps out of a sense of irony, the sight fluttered down to her heart. "I guess they were gonna try and get you into that freaky society of theirs but changed their mind. I get a lot of jobs like that. Watching you organics suffer never gets old, so I always let you guys know you've been betrayed."

"I refuse to believe it!" The running footsteps were getting very close now… "An Imperial officer would never-!"

"You don't know much about the Empire, do you?"

"But a-!?"

"Time's up!" The blaster spoke, but Yomi only felt a jolt of adrenalin and something warm slamming across her torso. The pavement cracked angrily into the back of her head as she fell, bouncing once, to rest at the foot of an impotent streetlamp. She wasn't dead, though she seemed to be having trouble breathing. The wind wasn't knocked out of her; there was a weight resting on her chest…

"Damn," an aggravatingly familiar voice gritted. "That hurt."

"Hey!" Yomi cried, "You're that kid from Livingston!" She normally wouldn't have felt the need to verbalize, but she was understandably a little befuddled.

"Ow!" Her savior whined. "Quit moving, that hurt!" She was justified: a horrible, crispy wound stretched from her armpit all the way down to her hip.

"Sorry," Yomi jerked to her feet, easily lifting the smaller woman's weight. The Sombra had lowered his arm, cocking his head to one side. Apparently, he was having trouble processing this new development. "Oh, come on! That was a perfect shot! What good is all this computerized super-precision if you stupid people are just gonna go jumping in front of my shots anyway?"

"Stick it up your-!" Takino growled weakly, but her companion was already running.

"Why did you do that?" Yomi gasped out, straining her prodigiously muscled legs to put them around a bend just ahead of a flurry of angry blaster bolts. The Sombra thundered into action behind them, but, being so massive, it would take him a little while to get up to speed. Hopefully she could get a good enough lead to make it back to base—but wait, if it was really Ogawa had hired this _thing_, then would that really mean safety?

"Ungrateful wench… shoulda let you get blasted…"

"I'm just surprised! I--thank you!"

"Quit talking, stupid! You're run--ow! _Ow!_"

"Sorry!" Yomi rounded another bend and skidded to a halt with a horrified yell. "Another one!? The _hell?_"

As if the first wasn't enough, there was indeed another psychotic death machine clomping up to her. This one was just under two meters tall, an android of nondescript design painted dull black and carrying an oversized blaster in one of its wicked-looking grippers. Apart from the weapon, though, the only thing that set it apart from any one of the dozens of protocol droids you might see in a city this size was the hellish, baleful gleam of its tiny optics. Meeting those "eyes," Yomi knew that she was facing a being to whom her life meant nothing.

"Admonition: Keep your pants on. Statement: Though placing the barrel of my blaster against your meatbag skull and pulling the trigger would make my circuits glow with pleasure, my employer's orders on this matter were explicit. With great reluctance, I will ensure your safety for the duration of your stay on Atredes."

"Uh…" Yomi wavered. "What should I…?

"Dry Statement: Running would be a good start. Though your feeble organic legs cannot carry you very quickly, they should be more than sufficient to stay ahead of that lumbering moron. Addendum: If, for some inexplicable reason, you wish that unit to remain functioning, it would be in your best interests to see her to a meatbag repair facility. Hopeful Suggestion: Or I shall put her out of her misery?"

Yomi recoiled again, twisting to shield Takino from the droid. Her new friend didn't respond, and she already knew enough to take that as a _very _bad sign. "No, I think I'll get her to a hospital. Um, good luck."

"Prediction: Luck will not be a factor."

As she started off again, she heard the Sombra thump around a corner behind her. "Hey, this was supposed to be an easy job! What are _you _doing here!?"

"Assessment: I will likely not require my weapon to eliminate this inferior model." The newcomer tossed his blaster aside. "Estimate two-point-four seconds to target neutralization."

"_Inferior model!?_ You're, like, five-thousand years old!"

The ancient robot didn't respond, instead unleashing his feared hand-to-hand technique. "Exclamation: Shoryuken, bitch!"

_Whunk! _Yomi had to slow down again as something whizzed over her head and clattered to the ground in front of her. It was the Sombra's head. "I'm gonna get you for ruining my shot, Takino!" the head snarled, "You hear me!? I'll hunt you to the ends of the galax-!" Yomi kicked it out of her path and kept running.

"Great…" Taknio mumbled, head lolling back and forth with Yomi's stride. "Now a giant killer robot's got it in for me. Thanks, lady."

* * *

"Hey, wake up!" Yomi was jolted out of her doze by a bony fist lightly striking her cheek. The hand took to her shoulder and started shaking her when she didn't immediately respond. "What gives? Where are we?"

"…uh?" When her bleary eyes finally opened, all Yomi could see was a horribly bright smear of pastel colors. She blinked rapidly and donned her glasses, absently warding her assailant off with one hand. "Wh- you're up?"

"What kind of a stupid question is that?" Takino snapped, arms akimbo. She sat up in her bed, pastel yellow blankets bunched over her lap and clashing gently with her robin's egg-colored hospital gown. "And where are my clothes?"

"I, um, I think they're in the closet, there. But you shouldn't move yet…"

"Bullsh-_yearrrgh!_" The patient fell back, clutching her side. "Why is that _still _there!?"

"Bacta shortage," Yomi explained.

"What?"

"The rebels took one of the major spaceports a week ago, so the Thyferrans haven't been sending as much."

"That sucks! Oww!"

"There's a pain medication on the table, there. Did you just wake up?"

"Yeah, I…" Takino suddenly jerked towards her in surprise, yelping explosively at her wound's protest. "What the _hell _are you still doing here? Dude, there's gotta be a dozen bounty hunters out to get you now! I _know _that big robot, my dad hired him once, and any bounty that would get _his _attention…!"

"It was an exclusive contract, so he was the only one. Listen, thanks for…"

"And why are you still _here?_ What makes you think I want to see your homely face after I took a blaster bolt for you!? You already thanked me, so go the hell away!"

Yomi reminded herself that the other had reason to be upset. "I… I wanted to do more than thank you, actually…"

"Hold on there! I don't swing that way!"

"That's not what I…"

"And besides, I don't want an Imperial to owe me anything!"

"I resigned."

"Huh?"

"Actually," Yomi smiled slightly. "I'm deserting. I've already hacked my personal data so they'll have a harder time finding me."

"Whoa, now. You're a fugitive? That kinda sounds like fun."

"Well, here's your proof that I'm a Valerian—if you'll let me, I'm swearing a life-debt to you." Yomi watched Takino carefully. "You saved my life, and so I want to give it to you."

"A life-debt…" Something very close to malice shone in the young woman's eyes. "So you'd be, like, my slave?"

"Well, no. But… but I'd have to protect you… to the death."

"You sound scared."

"It _is _scary." Yomi squared her shoulders. "But… I've had years at the Academy to get used to the idea of dying for something, and it's my duty as a Valerian to repay you."

Takino laughed. "Couldn't you just treat me to dinner?"

"The thought crossed my mind, but I wouldn't feel like I'd done right by you."

"Look, lady," suddenly, the student's eyes were earnest. "You don't _want_ to spend my whole life looking after me, even though it'd be pretty short. You don't know me. You'd be a cynical, ruined shell of a human being inside a week."

"I'll take my chances. My given name's Yomi, by the way."

"Mine's Tomo. Yo." She stuck out her hand, cringing. Yomi tried to take her hand gently, but she still squeaked in pain. "Oh, good one! Way to protect me, already!"

"Uh, sorry…"

"There." Tomo pointed at her, thin finger hovering an inch from the Valerian's nose. "Get used to lots of _that_. I'll bitch and moan and try to piss you off all day. It's just how I am."

"I'll survive."

"Okay, then, Ms. Suicidal Former Imperial Fake-Ass Valerian, I accept you as my minion!" Tomo gestured imperiously. "You can start by getting me some food, and not that tasteless crap they'll have in the cafeteria!"

Yomi sighed.

* * *

"_This is the first time the Sombra has failed us. How did Mizuhara defeat him?_"

"I have no idea," Ogawa replied, allowing himself to smile at the whirling static. "The Sombra won't say. I can only assume that somebody with a _lot_ of firepower stepped in and dealt with him."

"_I detect a slight note of irony in your voice._"

"I apologize. It must be a bad transmission."

"_I sincerely hope so, for your sake. Keep me informed._" The Headmaster from Ordos winked out.

"Okay, sorry about that interruption," Ogawa said, turning in his chair. The ancient android stood before his desk, unarmed but still as dangerous as a platoon of stormtroopers. The officer placed a briefcase on the desk. "As promised, your pay."

The droid opened the case and played a scanner set into one of its fingers over the credit notes. "Statement: To my dismay, you have not cheated me, thereby giving me an excuse to splatter your meatbag chassis all over this office. Meaningless Courtesy: I look forward to taking your money in the future. Addendum: God help you if these bills aren't consecutive, meatbag."

"A pleasure doing business with you, too."

* * *

"Are you sure this will be okay with her?" Yomi asked, a tad nervous.

"Oh, sure!" Tomo chirped. "Don't worry about it!"

"Because I don't want to get the Thyferran Royal Family down on me, too…"

"Ah, she's just a Baroness." Tomo's hands flew over the vessel's controls with surprising skill. "And besides, she said I could take it for a spin sometime."

"Sometime when she was _around_, I assume," Yomi paced back and forth behind her. "Otherwise, you wouldn't have had to hotwire it. And didn't she already lend us a bunch of money to escape?"

"12,321 credits exactly. She, uh, likes palindromes." The _Gray Spirit _hummed beneath them. "When she finds out I was aiding and abetting a wanted fugitive, Ayumu will forgive me. Honestly! Why are you worrying so much? It's not like we're planning to disappear with her ship for five years, is it?"

"I've just… never stolen a ship like this, is all."

Tomo laughed long and hard at that. "Well, get used to it! How else do you think we're gonna make a living, Minion?"

"For the last time, I'm not-!" Yomi was thrown into her seat by acceleration as they blasted off. It hadn't been two days yet, and she already regretted tying her fate to that of this lunatic. All the same, though, there was a tiny part of her that wouldn't have had it any other way.


	36. A Capital Start

**34: A Capital Start**

Ayumu sat silently in the midst of the main bunker on Endor, doing her damndest to meditate. It was something Nochichi had never quite taught her; a calm spirit was not an asset for a Sith, it seemed. "Get it together," she whispered to herself. It become something of a mantra lately. "Get it together, get it together…"

Soldiers and technicians scurried all about, seeing to this and that in preparation for the imminent Rebel attack. Not even the Guardsmen were safe from doing a little work. "Man," Garus grumbled nearby, "When was the last time I had to read a tactical display? I don't remember half this stuff."

"It's like I'm back on Delnor," Tarvis complained.

"I met someone who went to the Academy there," Ayumu commented.

He looked up from his work. "Really? Would I know them?"

The Sithling hesitated. "Uh, no… she was on a… different career path."

Tarvis would have inquired further, but she had resumed trying to meditate.

* * *

"Ha! I knew it!" Tomo punched her friend's arm and, meeting rock-hard Valerian muscle, sprang back to wring her hand. "I knew you'd come back!" 

Yomi sighed mightily, snapping one of the _Silver Rose_'s external access panels in to place. "It's not like you can just release me. Other Valerians would spit on me if I stopped protecting you, even if you said you did."

"Yeah," Tomo leaned against the shining hull and crossed her arms. "Swearing the debt on the spot like that was pretty rash of you. Now you're stuck with me!"

"Wha… _you're_ the rash one! I never figured out why you took that shot for me anyway... you didn't even know me!"

The smaller woman looked at her sincerely. "I saw my chance."

"To do _what_? Feh, there's no point in asking you that question."

"That's right," Tomo said proudly. "Oh, look, it's van Buskirk! Do you think he's here to spit on you?"

"He doesn't know I almost…" Yomi turned on her heel and smiled in greeting. "Captain van Buskirk, it's good to see you!" She held out her hand, but the other was having none of that; the traditional Valerian greeting left her sitting on the deck rubbing her head.

"Sorry," he said merrily, unfazed by his own knock to the head, "I forget to tone it down for ladies sometimes."

"That's okay," Yomi replied, rising unsteadily. Surprisingly, her partner helped her up and stood by silently. Perhaps the Corellian had multiple personalities…? Tomo's mental state was a mystery she'd never unraveled in all their years of working together. "What's up, though? You don't usually come by this way."

"Oh, I just thought I'd pay you a visit. I'm still impressed by your showing at the Victory Dinner… did you keep the Spirit Ribbon you got?"

"Well, I…"

"She has it framed," Tomo supplied helpfully. The taller woman thwacked her a good one, but her smile didn't fade. "It's the peak of her career!"

Van Buskirk had a healthy laugh at that, slapping Yomi's back almost hard enough to bowl them both over. You couldn't really hold it against him, though… at 350 pounds of muscle, he was only slightly above average for his cohort, and their bonding was something frightful to behold. "Well, hey, listen. The Prof's got my boys and these little commando twerps going in to blow the base on Endor, and she sent us out to get a few of the smuggler ships to escort the shuttle. I'd feel a lot better with a Valerian on our back."

Yomi opened her mouth to refuse, but then cast a glance at Tomo. For once, she wasn't immediately putting in her oar, but rather waiting for Yomi's decision. There were so many reasons not to, but… "Okay," Yomi finally said. "We'll do it."

"He-eey!" van Buskirk boomed, "That's what I wanted to hear!" He moved in for a traditional Valerian farewell, but at her terrified look, settled for a hug. As if that were somehow less bone-crushing.

* * *

"Why are you so uncomfortable?" Chiyo asked. 

The newly-promoted Major Kagura turned away from the towering viewports of the _Mon Remonda'_s main concourse. The light-gray Major's uniform made her look taller, sharper and more competent than Chiyo had ever seen. Come to think of it, she hadn't even seen the woman in uniform since they'd first met. "Do I look uncomfortable?"

"No, but you are." Chiyo stood next to her, smoothing the front of her Jedi robes down. "In fact, I think you were more at ease when we were getting shot at on SRS-174."

"Where, now?"

"The forest planet we crashed on."

"Oh, so that's what it was called. Yeah, getting shot at, I can deal with. But now I'll have to tell other people to go out and get shot at, too."

"Didn't you before? I thought you were in charge of Princess Kaori's personal guard."

"That was different."

"How?"

"It just was. Now there's gonna be a big mess of snot-nosed little privates depending on me to put them where they won't get shot. And they will get shot, nothin' I can do about it. And I'll have no choice but to keep flingin' 'em out there, protecting my own precious hide because I'm the damn officer…"

The girl laid a hand on her arm. "But you're up to it."

"That's right. Someone has to be, I guess."

Chiyo leaned against the viewport and looked up at her. "I always admired your strength, Ms. Kagura. In fact, I used to be scared of you."

Kagura blinked. "Really?"

"It was after you shot those stormtroopers…"

"Wait, which? You just described half of my adult life."

Chiyo half-smiled. "Any case will do. It was just… You were always so cold and merciless to them, and I wondered how you could do such awful things and still be a good person…" her eyes slid sideways towards the stars, "But then I got to thinking about what a mess the galaxy would be if good people weren't able to do awful things."

"Mm." Kagura clasped her hands behind her back. "I'm in charge of the ground mission on Endor. We'll have to disable the _Death Star_'s shield before the fleet can move in."

"Really? That's… wow… that's quite a responsibility."

"We'd love to have you along. Since none of us here can order you around anymore, I thought I'd ask."

Chiyo pushed off of the wall and considered. "Well, it seems to be where I can do the most good. I'd be honored."

"Tomo and Yomi're along, too. Heck, it'll be like old times!"

"But the _Silver Rose_ doesn't have stealth gear…"

"It does now. You should have seen Yomi when we told her; she just about had an aneurism."

* * *

Of course, no matter how advanced, stealth gear isn't proof against every manner of detection. The shuttle and its three escorts dropped towards Endor's far side like stones, not daring to even light their engines until repulsors became necessary to keep them from slamming into the ground like so many overripe melons. Devices mimicking natural distortion and presenting false data would hopefully fool any scan that fell on them by blind luck. 

None did, but their arrival did not go unnoticed.

Ayumu sat high in a tree, watching the streaks of their atmospheric entry cut through the twilight. She ran a lighter under her bared forearm absently; absorbing the heat was a calming mental exercise.

"Ms. Chiyo," she murmured, "Kagura, Tomo… and a presence I haven't felt since…" She stood gracefully and passed cold hands over the lightsabers at her hips. This was going to be an unpleasant night.

* * *

The shuttle and its escorts made a small cluster amid the towering trees. A light touch on the part of the pilots had kept them from plowing into any of the largest; odds were, the ships would have come out the worse for their encounter. Night fell fully as the men unpacked and assembled. 

"Okay, gang," Kagura sat on the shuttle's skid and addressed the assembled soldiery quietly. The smattering of smugglers stood in their midst uneasily, most of whom would stay to guard the ships. "Our spy got us this key-card and it should open the bunker right up. Now, this is the only one we have, so whoever carries it has to be very careful. I shouldn't be the one, 'cause the Imps will be gunning for me."

Tomo rushed forward and held out her hand. "I'll carry it," she said heroically.

Kagura put the card in her hand, but kept a grip on it and searched the smuggler's eyes carefully. After a few seconds, she pulled it back and said, "Hey, Kitamura, come and take this."

Captain Kitamura came forward to accept it. As she shot a spiteful look at him, Tomo realized that she'd seen him somewhere before. "Hey. weren't you on-?"

"We can catch up later," Kagura said. "You guys all know your jobs- let's get going!"

And so they set out on foot, Kitamura's commandoes spreading out in a wide formation, the Valerians bringing up the rear along with the few smugglers that weren't waiting behind. Occasionally they would catch a glimpse of Maya, a sleek, predatory silhouette dusking through the trees, or that of his master, scarcely less threatening. Occasionally they would hear a speeder bike moan by through the trees, but the only one to get close enough to be worrisome mysteriously crashed.

"Damn, but that girl's scary," Kagura muttered.

If all went well, this would be a quick, simple mission. In theory, the Imperials weren't expecting a ground attack; they were expecting the Rebels to jump into the system and splatter against the _Death Star's _shield as if it were a colossal cosmic bug-zapper. If all went well, they'd catch the stormies with their pants down and seize the day easily.

Of course, all NEVER goes well.

Kagura picked her way through the brush near the center of their formation, uncomfortably adjusting her thermal goggles. Something flickered across her view above her, but when she looked up there was nothing. Probably a squirrel or whatever Endor had for those…

"Oh, shit!" one of the guys up ahead yelled. "It's…!"

"Just a pinwheel!" Kitamura cut in harshly. "Keep it together!" With his curt gesture, the commandoes took cover and started scanning the surrounding area. Their nerve even seemed to pluck up when no Sith came tearing out of the sky at them, breathing fire, turning men into pumpkins or whatever it was they did.

Ayumu stood on a bough above them, frozen. She hadn't been sure before, but there was no question now. Hearing Benjiro's voice again tugged at her, not in a romantic way, but as a tie to older, happier days… she'd ordered this man not to die; would she now have to kill him? More to defer the question than anything else, she ignited both lightsabers and pressed them together.

At the light and sound, the men below turned their guns towards her. Red and purple points of light flurried down around them, making some cringe back in surprise, but most professionally drew a bead and waited for the word to fire.

"I've got her," Chiyo said in a soft but carrying voice. Ayumu extinguished her weapons and ran lightly away, the prodigy leaping up in hot pursuit. From branch to branch they flew, just as Sakaki had on that dark night so long ago… but Chiyo shut the stinging memory away before it could distract her.

Her chase turned out to be a short one. As soon as they were more-or-less out of sight of the soldiers, her sense of Ayumu seemed to vanish. Chiyo skidded to a halt and looked around uncertainly; had the other figured out how to make herself invisible to the Force, or…?

"Ysalimir!" Ayumu called gleefully, and something wooly slapped across Chiyo's forehead. The Force was gone! Stunned, the girl fell from her branch and thudded into the surprisingly hard dirt. After a second or two to regain her breath, she scrambled to her feet, grabbing at the creature clinging to her forehead. Unfortunately, its nasty little claws were dug into her scalp quite soundly.

Nearby, Ayumu landed much more gracefully, wearing one of the creatures as if it was an exceptionally ugly stole. Chiyo frantically ignited her lightsaber, noticing for the first time that the other woman was a bit bigger than her.

"Well, if ya want…" Ayumu said doubtfully, disdaining to draw her own. A rustle made Chiyo turn about; she was suddenly surrounded by darkly-armored stormtroopers wearing ysalimir cages on their backs. With at least fifteen blasters trained on her, she had no choice but to extinguish her weapon and put her hands in the air.

Everything had happened so fast! She was still trying to recover from losing contact with the Force as Ayumu gently peeled the ysalimir (by the end of its tail, naturally) off of her forehead and handed it to the stormtrooper captain. "Take her up. I'm going to deal with the others."

"Yes, ma'am."

_Deal with…?_ A blaster dug into her back with a terse, "Move!" and a well of despair rose in Chiyo as she was led away from the coming battle.

* * *

"They're on to us already…" Kagura swallowed a curse and hit the comlink adhered to her jawline. "Kitamura, van Buskirk," she whispered, "Take Alpha and Gamma groups on the main route… I'm going on the secondary with Beta group." 

Two affirmative clicks responded. Dividing their forces could be dangerous, but if they were found out too soon, there would be enough Imperials here to sweep them away no matter how closely they clustered.

As the groups plunged deeper into the jungle away from each other, she started to grow a little nervous at the continued silence. If the Imperials had known where they were going to land, would they have only sent Ayumu? Or had she sensed them on her own and come alone?

And as long as she was asking pointless questions, why had she decided to drag the smugglers along? Even though there were only four of them behind her, they sounded like a whole squad. Tomo alone sounded like a batallion, she noted with chagrin.

"Major?" the point man of Beta whispered through her com, "We have a situation up here…"

"I'm coming," she replied, breaking into a light jog. What kind of a 'situation' could there be? If it were an Imperial entanglement, she'd have been notified by blaster-fire. When she reached the front of their lose formation, Kagura was greeted with an almost amusing scene.

One of the tiny, catlike locals stood in the middle of a small clearing, facing three tall, brawny commandoes with blasters, wavering uncertainly in its implacable gaze. The creature put its paws akimbo and growled at them.

"Where's our Jedi?" Kagura asked, looking around impatiently. "There's kind of a language barrier, here… uh, hello?" She knelt before the creature. "We're here to help you… uh… do you understand? Let us… help you?"

The native gestured and suddenly Kagura was covered in green laser sights. The commandoes clustered in front of her and returned the favor as best they were able; one had his hovering right between the emissary's eyes. "Hold on!" Kagura cried, "Wait, we have to be diplomatic!"

"Well, say something!" the point-man gritted. The lead native held his hand in the air. "And fast!"

"Uh… uh…"

Just as the gray-furred arm was about to fall, though, something golden streaked down between them. Maya's tail lashed from side to side as the muscles in his back bunched together, a horrible snarl twisting his lips. The emissary hesitated, flinching back as the beast loosed a terrifying, full-throated roar. In the seconds of absolute silence that followed, Maya sat down and started cleaning himself.

"Well…" the emissary said in perfect Basic, "I guess you can't be all bad if you've got such a magnificent creature by your side." The soldiers stared at him blankly. "So, uh, you're here to help us, then? I think we can work something out. Now, it's probably too much to hope that the trespassers didn't hear that, so you'd better come with us."

Kagura hit her com. "Hey, Kitamura, change of plan. Kitamura…? Hey! Respond!"

Her hails were met only with static.

* * *

God had evidently not intended Valerians to be subtle creatures. Though they tried to be quiet, their column moved through the forest rather like a herd of elephants. The skulking, silent commandoes sweeping ahead of them were uniformly disgusted. "What the hell was Kurosawa thinking?" one asked quietly. 

"Distraction?" another suggested.

"Cut the chatter," Kitamura snapped. Like his superior, the silence was making him nervous. Though it had been unnerving to see the Baroness again, he couldn't afford to think of her as such. That woman was only Darth Mito, an enemy, and one Chiyo-chan was hopefully dealing with.

He glanced over to van Buskirk. The Valerian officer was doing a much better job of being stealthy than his countrymen, not that it mattered much. If there were any Imperials nearby, there would be no avoiding them.

When he looked back, Ayumu was standing right in his path, barely a foot away from him. "Geh!" he yelped. "Wh-where's the Prodigy?"

"I dealt with her." Though any rational being would be terrified, Benjiro found that her calm was as infectious as ever. His hand fell to his blaster, but he knew that the Sith could kill him three times before he drew. "You can turn around, you know. I won't stop you from leaving."

"We can't," Kitamura replied, almost apologetically. His blaster slid free of its holster and leveled on her chest. "Get out of our way."

"Your hands are shaking," she observed.

"Damn it! I don't want to…!"

"Fine," van Buskirk growled, "I'll handle this, then." His fist, nearly as wide as the woman's shoulders, streaked towards her soft cheek like a comet. Entirely unconcerned, Ayumu reached up and _caught_ his punch, glancing sadly at Kitamura as she stepped out of the short trenches her feet left in the ground.

Her delicate hand wrapped lightly around van Buskirk's middle finger, she walked around his arm and addressed both of them. "For what it's worth, it's nothing personal." Van Buskirk roared as a Force Shriek crashed through his arm, stumbling back and falling with a thunderous sound.

Kitamura fired a futile shot into her chest before another shockwave washed over him. Waves of force rattled his bones and froze his heart as the power cells of his com burst painfully against his face and his blaster blew apart in a gout of blue flame. As he pitched to the ground, she walked past him and held her hands out towards the advancing column of Valerians.

An arc of the forest before her fairly exploded into sawdust, Rebels knocked sprawling, bowcaster quarrels crumpling in midair and dropping. She closed her hands and the Shriek stopped, but the rolling crash of falling trees continued for some time after. Before her rampage could continue, though, a blaster bolt caught her in the shoulder. With a brief cry of pain, she vanished into the canopy above.

The commandoes of Alpha had finally come, laser sights scything through the foliage above, but they found nothing. "Oh, man…" one said sickly at the swath of mayhem Darth Mito left in her wake.

"Don't worry," the second-in-command said bracingly, "If it yelps like a sissy, we can kill it."

"Don't you mean if it bleeds-?"

He was interrupted by a pair of lightsabers igniting above them.

* * *

The Endoran village was spread out over about a mile in the canopies. The agile little natives had no need of ladders or bridges, part of what had hidden them from the Imperials so long. One could walk beneath a veritable feline metropolis and never know it. 

Beta group and the unfortunate smugglers were gathered around its center, as near to a safe place as there was on the whole forest moon. They could only assume that the others were lost; neither Alpha nor Gamma had responded to their repeated hails.

It was amazing how fast things had gone sour. One lousy Sith had ruined the element of surprise and swept half of their pieces off of the board, or at least cut them off from each other. Kagura sat back against a tree and addressed their emissary. "So, Wicket…"

"That's a stupid name."

"Well, if you won't give me your real one, that's what you're going by. Tell me about these invaders, Lord Wicket. What are their numbers like."

"Lord? We're a democratic society! I'm merely the elected head of a bicameral…" he shook his head. "Well, okay. There's about seventy armored guys, ten big shots, two guys in red that seem to do their own thing, that blaster-proof nutcase and two of those great thumping things with the treads and the big guns. Like houses that roll around?"

"What, you mean tanks?"

"Is that what they're called? What a dumb name…"

"I'm sure yours isn't any better. I am going to _stab_ Matsuyama when we get back… the report said fifty-five stormtroopers and three officers. And no armor… shit. All of that, and we have just four hours to get in there and blow the thing."

"What?" Tomo yelled nearby. "Do it again!"

"Ow! Ow! Quit it, you moron!" Yomi pushed her partner off and swatted her back. "This is right! I don't know how it happened, but…"

"What are you two squawking about over there?" Kagura called irritably.

"I was just going over the hyperspace course we took… whoever plotted it screwed up." Yomi ran a finger over a mess of pencil scribblings on the back of her trusty textbook. "If I did this right… and I _did_," she added, shooting a nasty look at Tomo, "We only have… oh… oh, no…"

"What is it?"

"We only have an hour before the Armada gets here."

"_What?_" Kagura bolted to her feet. "Since when… who…?"

"God, Yomi!" Tomo smacked her partner again.

"Quit acting like it's my fault!" Yomi yelled. "This happens sometimes, even to experts! I think the guy dropped a decimal."

"Well that goddamn decimal is going to cause us a lot of trouble. What were the odds? Prime Minister Wicket! How soon will your guys be here?"

"We're ready when you are."

"As you can see, this operation is off to a _capital_ start," she growled. She accepted a map from Wicket- it was the area surrounding the bunker, covered in helpful skull-and-crossbone marks. "Let's see if I can break the record for fastest briefing ever. Do you have the scouts looking for my other guys?"

"No," Wicket said sarcastically. "They're sitting around picking their ears."

"This could be the start of a beautiful working relationship."

* * *

The Battle of Endor would be remembered as one of the ugliest and messiest engagements in the history of space combat. The Rebels came blazing into the system, expecting to find a wide-open _Death Star_ with its power grid shut down for recalibration… instead, they found a fully shielded superweapon and, as Yomi had predicted, half of the Imperial Navy lying in wait. 

Accepted tactics flew out the window. Who could have directed anything beyond their own vessel in that maelstrom? Fleets of that size had not been assembled for hundreds of years, and never had they been crammed into such a small area of space. Too close even for metanukes; the cruisers and destroyers were reduced to gouging into each others' hulls with lasers and torpedoes as a nuclear detonation would have consigned dozens of blinded fighter pilots and smugglers to ignominious deaths plowing into this or that capital ship.

For a time, rallying around the _Mon Remonda_, the Rebels made headway. The alien vessel's strange beams plunged straight through shields and tore great chunks out of Star Destroyers, gliding sedately through a hail of return fire as if it were a spring rain.

Nobody screamed "It's a trap!" at the turning point; it was fairly obvious that they were expected when Endor's sun dimmed hideously. Through gaps in its spherical shell, one could observe the parts of the _Death Star's _solar draw moving and glimmering with newfound power.

A Rebel heavy cruiser suddenly blew apart, breaking into huge chunks that smashed smaller vessels from both sides all around it. Two minutes later, another erupted, becoming a flaming hulk that crashed vengefully against a Star Destroyer before detonating.

"Why aren't they hitting us?" the captain of the _Mon Remonda_ asked, "We've got to be the most powerful ship in the system!"

"Yukari wants me to know I've lost," Kurosawa replied gravely. "Come on Kagura… I believe in you…"


	37. Knight Falls

**35: Knight Falls**

"…ow! No, no, you're good. I'm just being a whiney bitch," Benjiro let the medic help him up and took a few steps to test the splint. "Thanks, man. What're we looking like?"

"Keyhoe, Gries, Felth and Gray are dead. Another fifteen guys are too injured to keep fighting. Uh… most of the Valerians are as well, but_ I_ sure can't convince them."

"She killed four of us?"

The medic shook his head. "Did my best."

"But why just f… oh, that's it! She's fighting us like we're those spineless poufs on Borleas. She expects us to scatter when we lose a few guys, so…"

"Captain!" one of the commandoes yelled, running up waving his com, "It's the Major! She got through to us!"

"Oh, man, she'd better have some _good _news."

* * *

Beta group moved slowly through the forest, tightly clustered and watching in every direction, warded by a great cloud of the natives. Stormtroopers wouldn't be able to come within a kilometer of them without their knowing, but it wasn't really stormies they were worried about.

Perhaps the main bunker didn't even know they were there… currently, they were fighting their little war solely against Darth Mito. Though Kagura had given a very heartening speech about how killable Sith were, they were still as nervous as all hell. And if professional soldiers were scared, just think of how the smugglers felt.

"Gyaaaah!" one loosed a volley of bolts at an innocent mammal. It dropped the acorn it had been gnawing at and shot up a tree, chittering angrily. The soldiers before him whirled and almost opened fire themselves before they saw his chagrined look.

"Idiot," one of them sneered, and they kept going.

"Wow, you almost got him," Tomo said admiringly, holstering her own blaster. "Little squirrelly things had better watch out for _you_."

"Dude…" the smuggler lowered his weapon and started walking again, looking around nervously as they passed through a small clearing. "What are we gonna do about _her_, though? I mean, I heard she can appear out of nowhere and kill you before you know she's there."

"That's ridiculous," Yomi said, an instant before they were blown off of their feet. Tomo threw herself back from the clearing, which had become a nightmare of blazing red-and-violet light, flying splinters and thundering shockwaves. And though she fancied herself more of a lover than a fighter, the old Takino quick-draw hadn't failed her.

Before her brain even realized anything had happened, her blaster was already drawn and pressed against the Sith's forehead. Ayumu was before her, holding the violet lightsaber across her throat. Their eyes met, Tomo's scared and angry, Ayumu's entirely blank.

For long moments, neither moved. _Where are those guys?_ Tomo thought frantically. Her mouth moved without her: "Whatsa matter? Scared?" _What the hell did I just say that for?_

Ayumu's eyes hardened fractionally. She pressed forward slowly… Tomo swallowed as the crackling blade came into contact with her throat. Her finger trembled over the trigger, but she knew that shooting would be useless. And even if it weren't, would she have been able to? "Any time, Mito… come on…" _What kind of an idiot am I? I am _so _dead!_

Ayumu suddenly pulled back and swung for Tomo's head—and stopped an instant before hitting her. Gritting her teeth, she raised her saber to try again, but was distracted by a clatter near her feet.

"Absorb _that!_" a commando shouted from a safe distance.

Tomo felt something strike her chest hard enough to knock her soaring (Ayumu?), and the clearing erupted. With the blast still ringing in her ears, she scrambled to her feet, not even taking a moment to recover before beginning her tirade. "You asshole, I could have died! What were you _thinking! _No, no, don't look at me like that! You-!"

Yomi's hand fell on her shoulder. "Calm down," she said weakly.

"Y-yomi! You're hurt!"

"Just a scratch. Now quit shrieking before the stormies hear you!"

"What, like they missed that explos-?"

"Shut up."

* * *

Ayumu crouched at the peak of a tree, staring disbelievingly at her shaking hands. Why? Why couldn't she do it? Tomo had been her friend, indeed, her _best_ friend, but she was the enemy now… it should have been easy, it should have…

But then, why should have it been easy? Why should killing _anybody_ be easy? What made Tomo's life more important than, say, the second guy she had run through with her lightsaber? Though her mind didn't want to grapple with the answer, it struck her in the forehead like an errant Shockball anyway.

Nothing.

And it followed that nothing set either of them above any of the unfortunate souls on Borleas, or Irtris, or the assassins she'd battled on Coruscant, or even those horrible Vratix. Ayumu had never had time to stop and think about what she did; Nochichi had always been there, taunting her, insulting her, egging her on, giving her something to focus on and hate…

"Ah… ah know it's a bad time t' crack up," she murmured, "But lookin' at things rationally, ah don't see anythin' else ah can do…" Ayumu sagged, fingers digging into her thick hair. What _was_ she? All this time…

Her com chirped. Moving on autopilot, she clicked it and responded. "_Maido_?"

"Mito! Get your ass up here!" the Empress yelled, making her wince away from the small device. "We have a situation!"

"A situation? But…"

Yukari disconnected.

* * *

Though not even a year ago she hadn't believed in the Force, Chiyo found that being cut off from it now was unbearable. Everything around her seemed drained of life and color, her limbs felt leaden and every breath was an effort. It was like being suddenly and cruelly blinded, and though she knew the effect was temporary, despair tugged her down as if she were doomed for all time.

Chiyo had always been able to keep or regain a positive outlook; you'd have to be to live on a planet like Tatooine for very long. But now she was alone and surrounded by enemies as her friends fought and died, powerless and cut off from the one thing that could offer a solution or even comfort.

_C'mon, Chiyo! Be motivated be motivated be motivated be motivated be motivated be… it's… no… use…_

Two stormtroopers strode behind her and a single ysalimir handler led her by a set of manacles. This was remarkably lax, but considering how beaten and docile she looked, and this quite apart from her usual aura of harmlessness and adorability, it was an easy mistake to make.

They moved along the top of the station. There, the shell had not yet enclosed it and the viewports still looked out on a sea of stars… and now they were also filled with warring spaceships. The battle was distant, even the greatest Star Destroyer was the size of one's thumbnail, but their engagement still covered the port's entire view as testament to its terrifying scale.

Chiyo came to a halt at the sight. She stared with wide eyes at the battle, suddenly thinking of Wedge, Mike and the other pilots out there, Kurosawa in the flagship, her friends still on the ground. They were out there now, even as she stood, and they were all in danger of dying. Perhaps they had already.

"Hey," the ysalimir handler said, tugging on her manacle. She spared a glance for him and the aggravating creature across his back, then looked back out at space. There was no excuse for this. She had to fight, even if-

"Get moving!" he pulled again, and this time she jerked back. Surprised at her strength, he stumbled a little towards her and the angle of his body _just_ brought his holster into reach for a split second…

She clumsily grabbed his blaster in both hands, throwing herself at his shins just as the stormtroopers opened fire and riddled the poor guy, killing his pet as well. "Uh-!" one said, realizing their mistake a moment too late. Both were jerked off of their feet and slammed against the ceiling to fall senselessly on the deck. Chiyo's lightsaber flew from one's belt and hacked through her manacles before finding her hand.

The Force flowed back into her, life and light and happiness and strength, filling her with giddy joy- but something else came with it. A vague, horrifying sense of the distant battle, of the terror, panic, death and grim pleasure of warriors at their work, as well as the sense of approaching columns of stormtroopers…

Suddenly, Chiyo almost _missed_ the ysalimir.

Vacillating for just a moment, she set out at a light run towards the station's peak. There was only one thing to do. This whole conflict came down to one person: the Empress. She was the only one who could bring it to a close.

She rounded a corner and was treated to a nasty surprise. A trooper with one of the ysalimir on his back was rushing up with a stun baton, and worse, his creature had been blocking another six troopers from her mind's eye. Before he got within four meters, she shot him. The shock of its cage hitting the deck killed the ysalimir, poor thing.

(Did these idiots assume she wouldn't use a blaster because she was a Jedi? Hey, warrior's honor is good and all, but Jedi like to _win_, too…)

The other troopers started shooting. Perhaps she might have been able to clear them away telekinetically, mind-trick them into leaving or any number of more humane methods, but there was no time to focus or think. There was only time to plunge ahead, parry their bolts, and…

In moments, Chiyo stood over them, not even breathing hard. The swirling horribleness of the Battle of Endor pressed in closer now that she was a part of it. "Oh…" she said sadly, to the universe in general, "Look what you've made of me."

To think she had once felt guilty for blasting whomp-rats.

Shaking off her melancholy or whatever it was, Chiyo started forward again. Another column was approaching fast, and it wouldn't do to be caught-

She blocked a shot behind her back, turning in surprise to see that one of the corridor's troopers was still alive. He had risen to a crouch, clutching a hand to his side, while the other held his carbine on her. As she turned to leave again, he lamented, "What…? She's… she's not human!"

Chiyo froze. After a few shocked moments of indeterminate emotion, she suddenly giggled. "Give the man a prize!" she cried, voice fraying at the edges. "How did you ever guess?"

But before he could respond, it turned out that she had indeed tarried too long; the doors beyond them hissed open to reveal another formation of troopers. _Flinkt!_ The wounded man looked down in a panic as the pin flew out of the thermal detonator on his belt. Before he could reach for it, an invisible fist knocked him into the midst of the newcomers.

Chiyo left them to figure out what to do about it.

* * *

"What do you mean the _Dream Knife _took off? We still need her!" Commander Silvis yelled, slamming a fist on his console. "There are still Rebels down here to be killed!"

"Sir, I'm sure that the regulars can handle them just f…" Tarvis started.

"The regulars? They're a blithering pack of numbnuts that can't even wipe out those rock-throwing vermin, let alone a squad of professional soldiers! Roll out the tanks! Call all of the troopers back!"

"Are you, perhaps, overreacting?" Garus suggested.

"Shut up, you! I'm in charge here!" Silvis rounded on a shadowy corner of the control room. "And _you! _I don't know why I hired you if you're just going to stand there!" A metallic hand reached out of the shadows and wrapped around his lapel. "Uh… I, I mean, whenever you're ready…?"

* * *

Silvis would forever be remembered as an incompetent commander, and this was a fair assessment. In the confusion of their mass recall, the stormtroopers were every bit as much in disarray as their enemies. Men were yanked into trees, dropped into pits, and knocked flying by swinging logs, many without even seeing their first Rebel.

"Damn… I was really hoping you were lying about the tanks," Kagura said. She let the thermal goggles fall around her neck; the sun had risen during their approach.

"Why on Endor would I lie about that?" Wicket asked. "I don't get you at all."

"But I thought you said they had _treads_," she continued, noting with a grimace that the two vehicles were hovering on repulsor-fields.

"I was just trying to think of the word…"

"Never mind, go over and get the Valerians ready…" she tapped her com, "Kitamura, it's time."

Across the clearing, one of Alpha group's commandoes burst out of the brush and, in an extremely goofy voice, yelled, "I'm like a sitting duck over here!" He plunged back into the woods with a "Woop-woop-woop!" that Curly would have been proud of.

"That's, uh…" Kagura scratched her head. "Okay."

As predicted, one of the tanks plunged into the woods after him, hull smashing through ancient boles and slender saplings with equal abandon. Clearly they were expecting the commando to lead them into some of the native traps, and just as clearly, they expected the tank to be able to withstand them.

That left the other tank and something like thirty-five stormtroopers. There were no towers, fortunately, and any stormtrooper that was stupid enough to climb a tree around here deserved what he got from the natives.

"Step two…" Kagura ordered softly, and in the trees above her, a dozen cat people readied their slings. Despite Silvis's name calling, they weren't planning to throw rocks, however… "And go!"

Thermal detonators pattered into the ground all around the second tank. In the split second before they went off, Kagura could swear she heard somebody laughing… when the smoke cleared, the vehicle was more-or-less undamaged but at the bottom of a fairly deep crater, wedged in sideways. "Be stuck, be stuck, be stuck…"

"Oh, for the love of Klono!" the tank commander howled.

Good enough for her.

Defenders started firing into the trees. They had learned from hard experience that shooting at the natives did very little good, but what else was there for them to do? Unfortunately for them, while their attention was directed at the canopy, the rebels on the ground were drawing a bead on them.

"Go!" Kagura shrieked.

By ordering his men into the clearing to hold the bunker, Silvis had doomed them. They would have put up an excellent fight from the woods using proper guerilla tactics, but tethered out in the open, there was nothing they could do.

They advanced quickly towards the field of fallen stormtroopers. Now all that remained was the walls of the bunker itself and--a searing bolt lashed through the lead man's body and scattered his fellows. "Sniper!" somebody yelled unnecessarily.

"No shit!" Tomo yelled back. Yomi hit her.

Garus panned his sight over the rabble as the blaster recharged. It was like fish in a barrel… though he was usually a nice enough fellow, the old Guardsman had missed the ruthless, brutal efficiency of being a sniper, his profession before being snapped up for the Guard.

There was some return fire, but it didn't bother him. He and a few troopers were atop the bunker's roof, protected by crenellations like the archers of an ancient fortress. _You don't have air support and you can't get close enough to throw your 'naids_, he thought pityingly, _what are you going to do now?_

"Just hold them a little longer," Tarvis said from the control room, "Reinforcements are coming."

"I'll hold them as long as you want!" he replied vigorously, firing again. As his blaster recharged, though, he noticed a shadow over his hand. He flung himself to the side as a largish chunk of stone crashed down on his emplacement. "They're throwing _rocks!_" one of the troopers cried disbelievingly. "Silvis was right!"

At the opposite edge from Kagura, the Valerians were, indeed, bombing head-sized stones on them. Rock-chucking was a time-honored tradition of Valerian warfare, carried on even into modern days, in isolated cases. If you think that makes them barbaric or backwards, stop and think: how many times in modern cinema has the square-jawed hero lost his gun and solved his problems with ridiculous, John Wayne-style punches? Rocks at least have range.

"The _hell?_" Garus wrenched his sniper rifle off of its stand and whirled about. He zeroed in on van Buskirk… then fell heavily to the ground when a baseball-sized rock beaned him in the head.

"Did you see?" Yomi cried with childish enthusiasm, "I got one! I got one!" The Valerians around her grimly continued flinging away. After an exultant pause, she knelt to heft another rock.

"That looks way too fun," Tomo commented, leaning on a tree behind them.

"It looks stupid," Wicket replied sourly.

"You love that word, don't you?"

"It's clear! Get to the bunker! Kitamura, key-guy, get over here!" Kagura stood boldly and led the general advance. They were in the clear! This was it. They would get into the bunker and…

"I'm pinned down, boss," Kitamura commed back, "There are more of 'em!"

"What, already?" Most of the commandoes were gathered around the bunker doors, but they couldn't do anything, now. "Where did they land—shit!" Indeed, more stormtroopers were emerging from the forest, putting the Rebels in the unlikely position of holding the clearing they had only just taken.

"Should've given it to me," Tomo sighed, sticking a knife under the keycard panel. With a plastic wrenching sound, it came loose.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

"I have a knack for these things…" she cut a wire and pressed it to another. Machinery grumbled beneath their feet and a second set of metal doors slammed down over the first. Kagura shot an angry look back at her. "Um… oops."

The commandoes had spread out around the door, using the makeshift barricades that their foes had just died behind, leaving the two women alone in the archway. Just as Kagura was about demand to give it a go herself, the doors slid open.

"Hey, good job, Tomo!"

"Uh… uh… uh…"

She turned and saw that the doorway was filled with a hulking, dark shape. "I remember you!" it said. "I haven't forgotten, Takino!" A metallic backhand knocked Tomo to the ground as Kagura went for her gun, but a great black fist struck her stomach and set her sprawling as well.

The Sombra stepped out and let the doors close behind him. The commandoes looked back at him in dismay as curving blades snapped out of his forearms and he struck what looked like a Silat stance. "I might just break 6,000 kills today," he announced. "Wait till that HK-47 sees me then! _Then_ we'll see who's emitting laugh-like vocal oscillations!"

"This is _not_ what I need…" Kagura wheezed.

* * *

Chiyo ran unsteadily, limping from a graze across her thigh. She had long since forgotten how many waves of stormtroopers she had fought through, and long since grown numb to what she was doing. Outside, the _Katana's _shields finally gave and its slender hull was ripped apart by turbolasers. Chiyo staggered with something that was a distant relative to a sob, leaning on the wall to catch her breath.

No time, no time… every second she rested, more people were dying. Her senses had given her a new insight into wars; as someone wise once said, winning one was like winning an earthquake. No matter how the battle turned out, it would still be a disaster.

And it wouldn't _stop._

The end was in sight, though. She could see ahead the great, gaudy double-doors that marked the Empress's throne room, and sense the woman herself behind them. Before she even got close, though, she got the sense of something even more putrid and sickening than the battle. It was a strong, forceful mind, focused on one task and otherwise almost completely inert. Coming into contact with it gave her a buzzing headache that almost obscured her danger sense in the critical moment.

A red lightsaber cracked down against hers and she skittered back, regarding her new opponent for the split second that he gave her. He was tall and thin, entirely non-descript except for a wild fall of hair that was exactly the same shade as hers. She could feel his thoughts shift as the situation changed, but they did so robotically, seeming to simply click between gears.

"Who the heck…?" the man attacked again and she retreated, nausea squirming in her guts. Something was wrong, something was _wrong_ with him, and yet she got the feeling that he was a lot like her in some indefinable way. This loathsome automaton, whose only independent thoughts seemed to be dimly flickering cruelty and a desire to lash out…

Was _this_ what Nochichi had wanted to make of her?

After a brief, furious duel, Chiyo threw herself inside of his reach and cracked him across the face with her artificial arm. As he lurched back, nose fountaining blood and lightsaber clattering across the deck, she grabbed his collar and drew back her own weapon. "Who are you? Another Sith?"

"Your brother."

"Wh-what?"

"You are… one of us…"

"One of _what?_" Chiyo shrieked, shaking him.

"It doesn't matter…" he grinned horribly. "Didn't you hear? We've both been replaced." Having said his piece, he lunged for a knife on his belt… and folded around Chiyo's lightsaber, still grinning. The Jedi let him down and closed his eyes, shuddering anew when she touched him.

After just a moment to collect herself, she continued towards the Empress's, sick and weary and desperate to end this battle. Unfortunately, there was one last obstacle in her path: a small, apologetic figure standing in the double doors.

"You," Chiyo said blankly.

"Yup," Darth Mito agreed sadly. "Me."

"That… that creature…?"

"Sorry, we got no time."

And with that, they had nothing left to say to each other. The Jedi and Sith crashed together, blades whirling and lashing more violently than they ever had before. Something was wrong with Mito this time; she didn't move with any semblance of her eerie grace, hacking away like a madwoman. Not that Chiyo was one to talk about missing grace...

Mito broke through her guard and set both blades scissoring towards Chiyo's neck, but, reacting on instinct, the girl blasted her away with a wall of the Force, knocking her sprawling through the double-doors and tumbling to the edge of Yukari's dias.

The Empress stood from her throne, raising her hands to make a dramatic proclamation—then promptly sat back down and tried to make herself as small as possible when she realized the fight was still on. She'd never seen a lightsaber duel before, and though this wasn't the most skillful example, she was suitably impressed.

After what seemed like months of their brutal contest, Ayumu suddenly dropped her lightsabers. Chiyo's eyes automatically followed them down--before she realized what had happened, the Sithling had grabbed her shoulders and Force Shriek filled her body with rattling agony. Fighting with every ounce of her strength to stand… Chiyo collapsed bonelessly.

Yukari stood back up and stared at the two women for a long moment. "That was… that…?" she shook her head rapidly. "W-well? Hurry up and kill her!"

"But I thought the plan was ta…!"

"Forget that! Forget the whole plan, she's too freakin' dangerous, kill her!"

"But…"

"Mito, come here!" In one light hop, Ayumu landed next to the Empress, who grabbed the sides of her head and stared into her eyes. "Drive this through your thick skull and burn it into your defective brain… _you will kill Chiyo Mihama!_"

Ayumu nodded unwillingly. She returned to her fallen foe and knelt to pick up her lightsabers, drawing a deep, shaky breath. Just one last… one last… and suddenly, Chiyo sat up and thrust the green lightsaber through her side! "Aaughk!"

"Sorry!" Chiyo cried, aware of the absurdity even as she did. She moved to withdraw the saber, but Ayumu caught her wrists. "Wh… what are you…?" Her voice faltered when the green blade _flickered out_. The Sithling was trembling, eyes downcast. "You didn't just… oh, f—_ack!_"

Tendrils of telekinesis wrapped swiftly around her limbs and drew her into the air, holding her steady as Ayumu stood slowly before her, bent around the wound in her side, hair nearly on-end with absorbed energy. She reached out and gently laid a hand on Chiyo's cheek, looking as though her heart would break. "It won't hurt," she said softly.

So, this was it. The crusade was over. Everything Chiyo had gone through to this point was meaningless, all of her friends were doomed, and the galaxy would forever groan under the Empire… the Empire that had destroyed Alderaan, pacified Osaka, killed Sakaki, her Aunt and Uncle…

Their eyes met. _What did they do to you?_ Chiyo's heart wailed. It wasn't right… what had any of them done to come to this juncture? Such dreadful things couldn't be allowed to happen! It wasn't right! _It wasn't_ _RIGHT!_

And suddenly, Chiyo was free and her foe was sprawled on the deck several meters away, gasping in pain. What…? As Ayumu tried to rise, another wave of Force Lightning clawed her to the ground and left her curled tightly, unmoving. She'd even tried to escape to her fourth dimension, but the bolts had followed—no mere electricity, these, but a physical manifestation of Chiyo's fury.

"Holy shit!" the Empress yelled. "Did you just-?"

"Yeah," Chiyo replied, looking at her hands oddly. "I think I just did."

"Whoa… I might have use for you yet!"

"That's the kind of thing you shouldn't say out loud," Chiyo advised calmly. If anything, she seemed to find their situation a little funny. "You wanted to try to corrupt me to the dark side and make me your minion, is that it?"

"Well, I, uh…"

"Is your view of the universe _that_ simple? Did you honestly put yourself on the Dark Side and the rebels on the Light Side, and just assume that if someone fell to the Dark Side they would serve you?"

"Yeah! I'm the Mistress of Darkness, here! The Sith are mine!"

"But did it ever once occur to you," Chiyo asked reasonably, "That if you take a Jedi that merely _wants _to kill you and twist them to darkness…" a lightsaber sprang to her hand and ignited, painting them both with its crimson light. "You could just get a Sith who's _going_ to kill you?"


	38. Chiyo's Decision

**36: Chiyo Decides**

The Imperial Stormtroopers were the most effective and feared fighting force in the galaxy. They were a tide of white-armored death that had rolled over countless worlds, grinding even the mightiest of armies, human and alien, into the dust. Wherever you saw their skull-like helmets, you knew that the Empire either ruled, or would very shortly.

The Endorians were less than impressed.

One trooper looked up from firing at the rebels gathered around the bunker to notice the little furry native standing at his elbow. "Hey, hey, Mark?" he asked the trooper next to him, "Is that one of the- AAUGHH!" He fell to the ground, trying to pry the creature from his neck.

The next trooper stood and another native performed the "Devil's Forehead" technique to his solar plexus. "Ghuhh!" All up and down the Imperial lines, lithe, dangerous felines were descending on the soldiers and bringing them to heel. The trooper on the very end stood and started to back away. _I lucked out!_ he thought happily.

Then, with a feral yowl, Maya tackled him from behind.

* * *

"You can run, Takino, but you can't hide!" the Sombra bellowed. Then, after a brief pause, "Hey, where'd she go?"

"Wh… the little coward!" Yomi cried, backing away from him. She had already loosed three quarrels into the machine, but they had only splintered against his armor. The mighty robot advanced ponderously, scraping his blades together in showers of sparks.

Kagura took careful aim and tried to shoot his visor out, but her bolt spattered off harmlessly. "Don't worry, Yomi," she said, "He'll never catch us at the rate he's going."

"That is true," the Sombra said, coming to a stop. The blades retreated into his forearms and a pair of gatling-blasters popped out in their place.

"I am _such_ a moron." Kagura shot a glance at the Valerian. "So… this is where I'm supposed to say I always loved you."

"What?"

"Just kidding…" she stopped backing up when she noticed that her jagged hair was being ruffled by a repulsor field. As one, the two women turned and beheld the second hover tank, drifting right behind them. "Oh, this is just _perfect!_"

"Ha ha! Wonderful!" the Sombra raised his arms. "Nothing in the galaxy is more enjoyable than human despair! On the count of three, tank commander! One… two…"

Tomo popped out the hatch, Wicket riding on her shoulders. "So are you guys gonna get out of the way, or what?"

"Takino?" the Sombra yelped. Perhaps yelp wasn't the best term; in his synthesized voice, it was more of a squawk. Kagura and Yomi dove to either side and the tank zoomed between them, plowing full bore into the mechanized bounty hunter. He caught its fender in both hands and skidded backwards almost gracefully until it drove him up against the bunker wall with an earsplitting bang.

"Ha!" Tomo crowed, "You never were a match for me after all!"

"Cheater!" the Sombra called back before the turret came 'round and stopped right over his head. "Hold on a second… I was just kidding! Ha ha! That whole vendetta thing was just-!"

_BOOM!_ The tank was thrown away by the force of its own blast, front crumpled and flaming, to crash in a semicircle and roll over on its side. It had fared better than the Sombra, though, who was now a great scorch mark on the otherwise pristine bunker wall. After a second or two of silence, Tomo tumbled out of the tank, rose unsteadily and rushed to Yomi, grabbing her arms.

"Did you _see_ that?" she cried happily, "I _whaled_ on him! I've been scared of that guy for years and he was nothing! I am _so _awesome! Can you believe it? YEAH!"

"Uh…" Kagura put a hand to the back of her head and watched a squad of the natives spill out of the fallen vehicle and stagger about dazedly. "We, ah, we could have used that tank."

"Oh… sorry…" Tomo laughed nervously. "I didn't think that out too carefully, I guess. But still, oh, my God, he was all like 'Don't make me destroy you,' and I was like…!"

Kagura tuned out her babbling and stared at the bunker. There _had_ to be a way to… "Major!" Captain Kitamura came hobbling up, waving the key card triumphantly over his head. "Sorry I'm late."

* * *

Compared to the messy, bungling battle outside, the taking of the bunker went like clockwork. The only hitch came just outside of the control room, as Kagura was nearing with a pair of commandoes. An unarmored Guardsman (she recognized their day uniforms) stood at their approach and raised a blaster towards them.

She snapped off a quick shot at him but he was already back behind cover. "Is that you?" he called in surprise.

"What?"

"You're Kagura, class of '93, Delnor Academy?"

"Uh…"

"I can't believe it!" he came back out, still holding the blaster on her but with a totally different bearing. "It's me, Tarvis Narr! I wondered what happened to you…"

"Narr?" Kagura asked blankly.

"Er… yeah, we were rivals, remember?"

So _this _is what Sakaki had felt like… "Nope, sorry. Now get out of my way."

"Well, I can't do that…" he grinned challengingly and gestured to the side with his blaster. "Wanna see how it goes without these guns, though?"

Kagura shrugged. "Sure."

So they both threw their blasters aside and Tarvis rushed forward—as a second gun popped out of her sleeve and went off into his thigh. The leg folded under him and he stumbled right into Kagura's side-kick. As he doubled over, Tarvis heard a faint _whoosh_—but couldn't react before the axe-kick slammed his face into the floor. "That's how it goes without _those_ guns," Kagura said coldly, and moved on. Who had time for drawn-out, dramatic confrontations, anyway?

* * *

Chiyo stood stock-still, holding the crimson lightsaber out before her. Her eyes were wide and angry, bearing a reddish tinge that Yukari honestly hoped was from the weapon's light. There was not an ounce of mercy in her expression, made especially frightening by her round, childish face. There was no reason in the universe that such a face should wear such an expression… this was obviously a person that had been pushed to her very limit.

_What did I ever do to her?_ The Empress wondered.

"Do you know the names of Owen and Beru Lars?"

Yukari shook her head.

"You should… Your Empire killed them. It's killed millions of innocent people like them."

"But I didn't—"

"You allowed it. You allow everything that happens; you're responsible for this monstrosity of a government, and you've done _nothing_ to improve matters since your father's days. Knowing about the prison camps, the executions, the suppression… you sat on your throne and did nothing. I don't know if it's apathy, laziness, selfishness or what, but now your reign is going to end."

"Hey! I thought you Jedi were all about mercy! If you kill me in cold blood, won't you, like, fall to the Dark Side or something? For all your talk, you're not a Sith yet!"

"Empress… I killed at least twenty stormtroopers on my way here. I think I'm as consumed by the Dark Side as I can be. Why should I have mercy on you after all that? Why are you any more important?"

"Because… uh, I'm the Empress?"

That was enough. Chiyo sprang forward, drawing the humming blade back for a titanic thrust. Before her was the woman responsible for everything she had gone through, for who knows how much agony and terror the galaxy over. But now it was over! Now it would end!

Yukari gasped as the saber's tsuba pressed into her chest. But when her shock cleared, she realized that the blade was unignited. A triumphant smirk formed on her face even as she was flung to the ground by the Force. "I knew—oof!—you couldn't do it! You're just a k-!"

She shut up as the reignited blade stopped an inch from the bridge of her nose. "Now order your forces to surrender, or I _will_ kill you, whatever comes of it."

A war was fought within the Empress, a bitter conflict between cowardice and stubbornness, but in the end, the victor was decided by the tip of a lightsaber resting between her eyes. The communicator flew from her pocket and activated. "Give up! Surrender! Call it off! Ack!"

"Surrender?" Kimura asked, "In our moment of triumph?"

"DO IT, DAMN YOUR EYES!"

"At-at once, my Empress!"

The saber's tip poked into the communicator and the weapon was extinguished. Chiyo stepped back unsteadily and put a hand over her eyes. "I can't believe…" wobbling, she pointed with both hands to her right and said, "I'm… I'm going over here… don' follow me or I'll, uh, I'll kill you… or something…" With that, she fainted.

The Empress looked at her in disbelief, then over at Mito. "Last woman standing!" she said proudly. She started to rush off to find another communicator and call off the surrender, but the deck suddenly rocked under her feet and threw her to the ground. "What the shit?"

* * *

As Yukari had predicted, Kurosawa did indeed have an ace-in-the-hole for this conflict. As soon as the _Death Star's_ shields fell, a cluster of stations, towed in on the far side of Endor's sun during their battle, dropped missiles in extremely short hyperspace arcs, carefully calculated to bend around the sun's gravity.

The surrender came just moments too late to cancel their deadly flight.

The schematics that had been so much trouble to get to the Professor showed no glaring weak points. No vents that a single torpedo could hit the reactor through, no exposed shield generators or important conduits--but there was one weakness that all unshielded vessels shared…

Resting on a lawn chair in the middle of their makeshift field hospital, Kagura raised a solo cup of ale to the metanuclear detonations that blossomed in Endor's darkened sky.

* * *

It took three tries for Yukari to get the keypad combination right, but when she did, the door whisked open on her personal escape shuttle's hangar. She blinked at the sight of it; weren't the mechanics supposed to hammer all those dents out of it, or however they got rid of them? Still, it wasn't terribly important that the ship looked good; this was a practical vehicle for emergencies.

And it was truly a dire emergency that would require the Empress to fly a vehicle _herself_. Almost tripping on her dress, she ran to the shuttle's entrance and started in on its combination. Just as the hatch slid open, though, a violet lightsaber ignited across the doorway ahead of her.

"You're forgettin' someone," Ayumu said with a smile, supporting a still-mostly-insensate Chiyo. Yukari was about to protest, but another detonation rattled the station sickeningly around them. "B- dammit, just get in!"


	39. Cloudgazing

**37: Cloudgazing**

"Do you have any Commanders?"

"Go fish."

A sigh. "Yuka… you really need to learn to play Sabbac."

Chiyo's eyes flew open. And then they snapped shut just as quickly when the ambient light stabbed into them painfully. "Oh…!" At the soft exclamation, both of her friends rushed to her side. "Chiyo-chan! Are you up?" Yuka asked, voice filled with concern. "How do you feel?"

"Fff… fine…" she tried to rise but found that she couldn't. "Why can't I move?"

Yuka made some _tch_ing sounds at Maya and he reluctantly plodded off of her chest and thumped to the floor. Chiyo gratefully drew an unencumbered breath… and suddenly sat bolt upright and threw her arms around Miru. "You're alive!"

"Yeah…" Miru said uncomfortably, hesitantly returning the hug. "They didn't let us come on the _Katana_… most of the powder monkeys and cooks and stuff got left behind."

Yuka unabashedly threw her arms around both of them. "I'm so glad you're all right C-chan! You were out for three days!"

Miru pulled out of the tangled embrace and pointedly slid a ways down the bed to sit by Chiyo's feet. The young Jedi ran a forearm over her eyes. "Three days? What's been happening, then?"

"Two solid days of hard partying, and now everybody's hung over or asleep," Miru summarized. "We've been here with you mosta the time, so we don't really know any of the political stuff… uh, Ms. Kagura was by with something for you, but you weren't up yet."

"You guys were here…?" Chiyo asked, "I'm… I'm sorry for making you wait so long. Thank you so much!"

"Don't worry about it, we…" Miru trailed off, staring at her. "Uh…"

"What's wrong?"

"Y-your eyes!" Yuka squeaked, thrusting a mirror into her hands. A sinking feeling filled Chiyo as she saw her reflection. Once light brown, her eyes were now stained a deeper chestnut color, with a faint reddish tinge. "It left its mark…" she sighed.

"What did?"

"Never mind, it's not important." Chiyo suddenly brightened. "What are you still staring for? Let's go find that party!"

* * *

Endor's towering trees waved under an overcast sky. The sun had finally recovered from the _Death Star's _solar draw, but though it was as bright as ever, the air was still unnaturally cold. The grounds beneath the Endorian village were strewn with the detritus of the Rebel's celebration; Kurosawa had promised the natives that her men would clean up, on pain of much scratching, bacteria and general misery. 

Ships of the Smuggler's Alliance were taking off and landing on the formerly Imperial landing platform; though the Rebels one day hoped to establish themselves as a legitimate government, for now they were still friends with outlaws and scoundrels, including those who came to do business with the celebrating victors.

Near one of the Endorian village's mostly arbitrary borders, Kagura rolled over on her lawn chair checked her chronometer. "Ugh… what time is it?"

"I dunno…" Benjiro sat up next to her and rubbed his head. He had been stretched out on the grass next to her chair, and seemed to be missing his shirt.

"Did we, ah, did we _do_ anything?" Kagura asked.

"Nope." He shook his head with a chuckle. "I wish."

She smacked him. "Hey, I'm still your superior officer."

"Not for long… and we weren't drunk, anyway."

"What?" Kagura picked up a bottle in the grass at her side and checked out the label. "Cider? I'll be damned… so what happened to your shirt, then?"

"Beats me."

"Well, you'd better go find… oh, hey Shorty! Shorty, over here!"

Some ways away, Chiyo glanced over. She had been wandering the village grounds in a state of amused shock, wondering where everybody was. Very few of the revelers were still around; most had scrambled to get off-planet before the cleanup. She rushed over with a big smile. "Ms. Kagura! It's so good to see you!"

"And you… what's with your eyes?"

"Bad experience," she shrugged it off quickly, noticing Benjiro and eagerly changing the subject. "Oh… uh, hello, Mister…"

"It isn't what it looks like," Kagura said quickly. "Captain Kitamura here was just explaining to me why he said I wouldn't be his superior officer anymore. I hope he doesn't think he'll be promoted; we're lucky if we're not discharged for _this_ mess."

"Hey, you didn't react when I…"

"I just caught it. Start talking, buddy."

Benjiro sucked a breath in through his teeth. "I'm not cut out for all this soldiery stuff, is all… it was fine being a guard in Osaka, when all we had to do was… y'know, we were like cops, pretty much, and it was a peaceful neighborhood. I can't do war… I'd rather be more…" he put out his hands in a smoothing gesture, "_Laid-back._"

Chiyo laughed softly.

"So you're gonna quit, then?"

"I'll do something else for the Rebellion."

"I almost envy people like you; I couldn't do something like that. I'm a soldier… it's what I gave my life to, it's what I'm driven to do, and I don't think I can change it."

"Well, you're pretty damn good at it," Benjiro offered.

"I think so, too," Chiyo added.

Kagura shook her head. "Not good enough. Not yet. What'll you do with yourself after the Rebellion, then?"

"I dunno… I was thinking of retiring and becoming a gentleman of leisure."

"It's not all it's cracked up to be," a new voice said. All turned, and Chiyo sprang joyously to her feet. "Mr. Sakaki?"

"Unfortunately, yes," the towering man replied. He made no move to stop and talk to them, instead striding right on by. Seeing that Chiyo wanted to follow him, Kagura said, "Before ya go, Shorty, take this." She tossed a medal to the girl. "Kurosawa said to give it to you."

"I get a medal for…?" she eyed it doubtfully. "Um- thank you, Ms. Kagura. See you later." Chiyo turned and jogged after the bounty-hunter-turned-smuggler. He glanced back at her, not showing how he felt about the intrusion. "So how ya been?" Yuichi asked noncommittally.

"Er, fine," she replied inanely. "But what… what are you doing here?"

"Oh, I got bored with retired life. Got a job with the Smuggler's Alliance; I'm workin' right under Karrde. I see you got a cat, by the way. Big one, though."

"You met Maya?"

"Yeah. Bugger tried to eat Marco… oh, don't make that face, Marco gave 'im the what-for. They're getting along famously now…" and indeed they came across the two felines, pressed together over something on the ground, making a cacophony of snaps and crunches. "But do you have any idea what _that_ thing is?"

Marco looked back at them and Yuichi held out his hand. With surprising grace, the fat cat bounded up to his arm and swished to his shoulder. Chiyo held out her arms and got bowled over by her own pet. Completely ignoring the girl's plight, Yuichi squinted at the remains the animals had been working on. For the life of him…

"Maybe it's one of those big gray birds?"

"I love you too, Maya, now get offa me!"

* * *

Yomi and Tomo walked along one of the Endorian trails, Yomi silently basking in the natural grandeur of it all, Tomo prancing along and humming the Rebel Victory March. The Honorable Captain whirled her medal about her wrist on its loop; she'd smacked herself in the face with it a few times, but couldn't bring herself to just wear it. 

"You know…" Yomi suddenly said.

"Eh?" Tomo turned and almost knocked herself off her feet with the medal. "Augh! I'll get you for that one!"

"I kinda miss the old days," the Valerian continued, as if she hadn't been interrupted. "Back before we met Chiyo-chan and Kagura… before the Rebellion. When it was just me and you, before things got so complicated."

"I thought you loved complicated things."

"That's not what I meant… but I suppose we can't go back now, huh?"

"You kidding? This Rebellion stuff is great!" Though she was as bouncy as ever, there seemed to be a deeper current in Tomo's voice. "I mean, I finally have something that I _care _about, yeah? I'm a part of something bigger than myself now! It's just such an awesome thing! I finally have a cause I could die for!"

Yomi winced at her choice of words. "Tomo…"

"But there is something missing still…" Tomo looked at her sideways, then hopped up onto a rock and walked across its top like a child. "Someone to live for."

"What are you…?"

"Oh, look! Chiyo's out!" Tomo dropped down and ran to the girl.

Chiyo leaned on a tree by the side of the trail, turning the medal over and over in one hand. She was gazing at with an incredulous, almost disgusted expression, as if it read 'For Meritous Conduct and Mass Murder.' Tomo walked up and slapped her on the arm, making her jump.

"Ms. Tomo!"

"Hey, Chiyo, I know just what you're thinking and trust me, it'll make you feel a lot better. Heck, I'll even do it too, it'll be fun. On three? One… two…" In unison, both hurled their medals into the forest, Chiyo with a strangled, angry cry. "THREE!"

They stood together for a few seconds, breathing heavily, then Tomo patted her back. "Didn't that feel good?"

Chiyo looked like a weight had been lifted from her narrow shoulders. "Thanks…"

"Oh, shit! I wanted to keep that!" And then the Honorable Captain sprinted into the woods, commencing a frantic search through the brush. "Yomi, help me here!"

Yomi stood next to the young Jedi and watched her friend's capering with a bemused smile. Chuckling warmly, she shook her head. "I'll consider it…"

* * *

Much to their dismay, most of the fighter pilots ended up getting roped into helping clean up. Grumbling half-heartedly, they spread out through the village grounds with garbage bags and sharp sticks, watched over by Endorians glowering from low branches. Still, some of their number managed to get some business done at the same time. 

"What do you _mean_ I've been passed up for your new squadron?" Mike cried.

"Sorry, Mike," Wedge rubbed his face tiredly. "But he's a better pilot, a better marksman and… now, I really hate saying this, but he's even better at being an obnoxious idiot."

"Oooh, man! Is _nothing_ left? Where is this Janson guy? I'm gonna kill him!"

"Leading _Katana _squadron isn't a bad deal is it?"

"No, but… hey, what're _you _doing here?" Mike espied Chiyo with her own garbage bag, sweeping bits of detritus into its mouth with the Force. He poked at her gently with the stick when she didn't respond to his hail. "Didn't you secede?"

"I thought I'd help out," she said airily. "How're you guys doing?"

"Ah, we're doing fine, except this backstabber cut me out of his new squadron."

"Well," she shot him a grin and returned to her work. "I don't want to ask this, but are you really Rogue Squadron material?"

"Probably not," he admitted grudgingly.

"But you are, Chiyo," Wedge said, leaning on his stick. "If you ever want back in, we'll have a fighter warmed up for you… and a drink chilled." The girl blushed. "As far as I'm concerned, you'll always be Blue Three."

Nearby, the box of Sombra parts stirred.

"Roger, Blue Lead," she replied lightly.

"Screw you, Blue Lead," Mike grumbled.

"But about this new…" Chiyo suddenly dropped her back and looked to the horizon wide-eyed. Just as the pilots were about to ask what was wrong, she sprinted away as if Lord Nyax himself was on her heels.

"I'll bet it was something you said, Mike," Wedge commented.

* * *

Ayumu sat high in a tree with a clear mind and peaceful heart. As long as she focused on nothingness, there was nothing in the universe that could bother her… never mind that she would have to face Chiyo again (who she was still under orders to kill), and Tomo, and that bloody panther. Never mind that she had betrayed the Empress and thus no doubt earned the wrath of the Guardsmen, who had been her only friends. Never mind that every time she saw Benjiro it tore open her wounds from Osaka. 

Nothing could bother her. Just remain completely unhinged from reality, and everything would be okay.

After perhaps an hour of noncontemplation, she noticed somebody grunting and huffing their way up the tree beneath her. Not bothering to reach her senses out to see who it was, she waited, serene in her bubble.

"You… were really hard to find…" Tarvis said, pulling himself up onto the branch behind her. "Couldn't you have picked a place on the ground?"

"_Maido_…" Ayumu looked back at him. He didn't _seem _vengeful and enraged… what was he here for? After a moment, she stood, her feet resting lightly on the pencil-thin branchlets. "What's up?"

"You know that I'm supposed to be locked up with Garus, right?"

"Yup."

"And it doesn't bother you?"

"Nope."

"Huh… guess you're not the ideal defector."

"Guess not. Why'd you climb way up here?"

"Well, I had something really important to tell you." He stood unsteadily behind her and started edging down the branch. "I've been waiting a long time to say it."

Ayumu closed her eyes and backed towards him a ways. Though she didn't let on, in her uncharted depths she was a romantic soul, and thought that maybe, just maybe… "What is it?"

They met exactly at the line where Tarvis's weight would have broken the branches beneath them. He put his arms about her, looking down at the back of her head regretfully. "It's that I… I…" he sighed. "I'm very sorry."

"For what?" she asked as the knife slid under her ribs.

"I wish I was like you," he whispered in her ear. "But I gave myself wholly to the Empire… if I turned my back on it, Bashere's spirit would haunt me forever… my partner, my b-brother died knowing that I would carry on to the death, and I can't… I can't…"

Ayumu drifted, once again in her bubble. It was just too much—even though she was expecting it, the reality of Tarvis's betrayal formed an impenetrable wall in her mind, impossible to scale or press through by any means. All she could do is flounder, disconnected, an impartial observer as a Force Shriek blasted out from her person and the tree shattered around them.

Tarvis's confession ended in a pained gasp as they fell together, the knife sliding free and spiraling away, trailing dark blood. They reached the ground at the same time, Ayumu landing lightly on her feet, the other slamming into the hard-packed dirt with a fatal crunch.

She looked down at him blankly, then down at her side, where blood oozed thickly through her light blouse, then at the knife that had landed nearby. It was a simple decision. Ayumu took three steps towards the knife, then suddenly laughed. "Silly of me!"

The lightsaber's cool handle felt good in her hand as she pressed its mouth to her heart. Everything was right with the world, or would be in just a… "**What _is_ this? I leave you for a lousy week and look what happens. Well go on, then, make it quick. I don't need you anymore, anyway.**" It wasn't fair! Nochichi's poisonous voice managed to drain the joy out of even this last, most wonderful leap.

"**Well? Aren't you going to-**" Without conscious thought, Ayumu shut him out. It should have been an astounding victory, but she had more important things to worry about. The galaxy would be a better place without her. For one thing, Chiyo would be safe from-

"_Don't!_" a pair of skinny arms flew about her waist, very nearly startling her into igniting the weapon. "Don't go!" Chiyo cried. Well, speak of the devil… for a moment, a perverse little voice in Ayumu's head pointed out that if she ignited her weapon now, it would impale both of them, meeting her original goal _and_ carrying out the Empress's last order…

But instead, she dropped the lightsaber, fell to her knees, and burst into tears. Chiyo knelt by her side, still holding her. But it sort of made sense that it would be Chiyo to reach her--though fate had set them against each other, they had much in common. Both had lost their families and homes, both had been manipulated and forced to do awful things and now, in a very important way, both were alone in the galaxy.

Well, maybe not _alone…_

Sniffling miserably, Ayumu looked up into the Jedi's stained, darkened eyes and realized that she could trust them. In spite of all that had passed between them, they could still be friends… and would.

* * *

"Four hours after Empress Yukari surrendered, the Imperial Viceroy on Coruscant seized power. Two hours later, he was murdered in his home and the Director of Imperial Intelligence, Ysanne Isard, took over," Matsuyama ruffled his papers nervously; lately, it had been kind of difficult to meet Kurosawa's eyes. "I used to work for Madame Director. She's a psychotic, evil bitch who's as cold as Hoth's poles and sharper than a lightsaber. But I, uh, I hear she has a charming laugh…" 

The Professor didn't respond to his lame attempt at humor. "Go on."

"Well, she's decided to see to our destruction personally… I'm sorry to say, we're going to miss the days when it was just Kimura after us. Speaking of whom, the other report I was going to make- those Imperial Guardsmen we lost track of tried to spring him and Yukari. Fortunately, the resident Jedi and her sidekick thwarted that one for us."

"Her sidekick? You mean the cat?"

"No… remember Darth Mito? I guess she's had a change of heart or something. Ever since about four or five days ago she's been following Ms. Mihama around like a puppy, and honestly, none of us know what to make of it."

Kurosawa's lips curved upwards slightly. "First student, perhaps?"

"It's a possibility. Was there anything else you wanted?"

"Princess Kaori… do the Imperials still consider her a wanted fugitive?"

"I thought you'd ask that. No, she was Kimura's project. The other Moffs could care less."

"That's a relief. We need all the talented diplomats we can get these days."

Matsuyama glanced at the wall chronometer. "Uh, I'm due before the Admirals in ten minutes, but before I go… did you want to see Yukari before the trial? I could arrange it."

The Professor opened her mouth to reply but then fell silent. After a few seconds, she turned away from him and sighed. "No. I have nothing to say to her."

* * *

Chiyo and Ayumu sat back to back in the middle of the village grounds. The fleet had already mostly shipped out, but they could take their time. The _Dream Knife_, recovered from the superweapon's wreckage and repaired admirably, awaited their need. 

Above them, the stars burned brightly in a midnight-blue sky. Bands of dark cloud rushed overhead, still propelled by Endor's recent unnatural climate shifts.

"Back on Tatooine," Chiyo said softly, "We thought of clouds as a good omen."

"Was clear days for us," Ayumu replied. "Ah wonder why it was a good omen, though? They came so rarely, ya'd think they'd want it t'be a bad one…" she trailed off and they sat quietly.

"Are you still worried about Ms. Tomo?"

"A tad…"

"I'm sure she'll feel better after shooting you a few times." Both giggled weakly at that. After all that had befallen them, all there was to do was laugh. "There's so much we have to do, though… I don't know if we're up to it. I mean, should we wait and learn more before trying to find students, or should we get a big group and all learn together?"

"There was this one fella'…" Ayumu said, in one of her patented 45 degree subject shifts, "Streen… a hermit that lived on Bespin. Nice guy but he hated people…" evidently, she didn't see a contradiction in that, "Ah'd visit him sometimes… we'd talk, y'know? We were really on the same wavelength. Ah think… Ah think he has potential. Oh, hey, Pika Meow Meow!" Maya, who had crept up out of the shadows towards them, snapped at her and curled up by Chiyo's side.

"I have a few in mind myself… but there's something else we have to deal with, too. You know the message capsule Wedge found this morning?"

"Y'mean the one he stuck his hand in t'keep from blowin' up?" Ayumu rubbed her hand in sympathetic pain. "Smashed his hand between those crystals?"

"Yes. Well, the message was for me. Take a look at it." She handed her new student/partner a folded sheet of paper. The message was very simple:

I'M WAITING.  
1887288-432340-388372

"What's the numbers?"

"Spatial coordinates. Ayumu… it's Eddore."

Ayumu gasped and dropped the page, but on further reflection broke into a grim smile. "It never ends, eh?"

"I don't think it will for a while…" Chiyo turned herself around and took the measure of the other woman. Was Ayumu ready? Was _she_? "So we've sat around long enough, don't you think? Let's go."

They stood together and Ayumu withdrew the _Dream Knife's _keychain. "I guess the Galaxy had better watch out," she said with quiet amusement. "'Cause a two-woman Jedi Order is coming to… uh… I lost the keys."

Chiyo slapped her forehead. _Some _things never changed.

**Finis

* * *

**

**Epilogue:**

And then, in the dark forests of SRS-174, _an evil force stirred!_ A flock of red birds looked around nervously, feeling the darkness approaching. Little did they realize that this would be the day when—

_Zap!_ With panicked cries, the birds scattered.

"PAH HAA HA HA HAAAA!" the rogue training remote howled after them, "That NEVER gets old!"

* * *

**Final Author's Note:**  
Thanks to Pete Zaitcev, who beta-read all 90,000-odd words of the unextended story, and without whom, quite apart from never being finished, this story would be roughly 1/5 as cool. 

Thanks to regular reviewers for motivation and suggestions- you know who you are, and anyone who peruses the reviews will as well.

Thanks to Kiyohiko Azuma. You rock.

Thanks to Aaron Alliston, Michael A. Stackpole, Kevin J. Anderson, Timothy Zahn, and George Lucas for ideas and characters that I shamelessly stole and tore apart for my own selfish ends.

Thanks to Doc Smith, author of the Lensman saga and father of the modern Space Opera. I owe the Valerians, the Spacefarer's God Klono and the name Eddore to him, though his Eddorians are much, much scarier than Chiyo-dad. On second thought, I probably should have named his race for the Overlords of Delgon.

Thanks to James Brown, just because.

And finally, thanks to you for coming with me for these 90,000-odd words… and thanks in advance for leaving your final comments! (er, please?)


	40. Master Mihama

**Postlude – The Rise of Master Mihama**

Darth Nochichi's vaguely squid-shaped space station didn't look particularly ominous, though it was made of the same strange, hide-like substance as his fighter docked outside. When the _Dream Knife _approached, it extended an arm with the proper docking interface crudely welded into its strange flesh.

"Why are we doin' this _now?_" Ayumu asked softly. She'd put up a brave front back on Endor and on the long hyperspace journey over, but now her composure was cracking a little bit. The monumental, jarring mass of Eddore overhead, at least three times the size of either of their homeworlds, didn't help. "We coulda made him wait a little bit longer, right?"

"But Ms. Ayumu, I don't know if we'll ever be ready for this," Chiyo replied, dark eyes sympathetic. "And it has to be done. I… don't think I can grow as a Jedi or a person with this hanging over me, and it seems like you have a similar situation, if you don't mind my saying."

"So we can only be ready once we've already done it?" Ayumu smiled weakly. She had a black eye from her reconciliation with Tomo, which made the expression's effect even sadder. "Oh, I love those logical loop-de-doos."

-_you will kill Chiyo Mihama_- the Empress said in her head. It wasn't really a telepathic message, just the remnants of that last, strident command aboard the Death Star, preserved by her conditioning. _Bugger off!_ she snapped. –_c'mon, you know you want to_- Yukari's voice wheedled. Sometimes, an active imagination can be a liability.

"And besides… we're…" Chiyo pursed her lips. "We're ready in case things go badly."

"Makes ya wonder 'bout the whole ends-and-means dealy," Ayumu said thoughtfully. "D'ya suppose…?"

"Please, not now, Ms. Ayumu."

Ayumu nodded and fell into silence as she nudged her vessel delicately along and docked without even a slight bump. It was odd to watch; at times, she didn't even seem to be at home in her own body, at others, she was grace incarnate on the ground or in space. Chiyo could sense the Baroness's mind drifting about in the vast expanse of her interior, and where it rested in its aimless wandering would define her for a time. There was no one else quite like her.

-_you will kill Chiyo Mihama_-

_No, I won't!_

-_just wait_-

That, she could do.

"Is Darth Nochichi trying to contact you?" Chiyo asked when they'd settled.

"Tryin'." This time, her smile was more genuine. "Sorry, but I'm never lettin' him in again. We'll have to wait till we see 'im to find out what he wants."

"Fair enough," Chiyo agreed. The Eddorian's voice was horrible enough when it _wasn't_ coming from inside your head. "You… you don't have to come, you know."

"Nah, I think I do. Y'think I'm gonna let you do this alone?" In spite of this bravado, they sat in the cockpit for a minute or two, staring into space and the great orange-and-brown bulk of Eddore turning slowly above them. "God, I'm scared," Ayumu finally admitted. "I'm shakin' all over inside."

Chiyo gave her hand an encouraging squeeze and they started towards the hatch, checking their belts. Both wore lightsabers and blasters, and neither had much hope of getting out of this without using them. When they had donned their breathing masks, the airlock opened and they stepped out through a gush of the station's foul atmosphere. Happily, the corridors inside were lined in silver-blue rather than the black of the exterior.

"Greetings, honored guests," a bizarre creature said. It looked like a stylized representation of a light gray spider, flattened out as if it had just peeled itself off of a storybook page. Five evenly-spaced eyes blinked at them as it hovered in the center of the corridor, though it didn't seem to have any mouth. Another Eddorian? "It's been a long time."

"We haven't met," Chiyo replied, tone neutral. "But I'm pleased to meet you."

"We haven't met in person," it corrected. "I was partially responsible for determining your genetic predispositions in terms of personality and temperament. It is always good to see how my work turns out. Follow me, if you will. The Director is waiting."

Chiyo looked ill, but followed when Ayumu gave her a gentle push. The taller girl leaned in as they walked and whispered, "You okay?"

"He… wrote my brain. Like I'm some kind of _android_ or…"

"You're no more written than any of us've been," Ayumu countered. "No one picks their genes, right? You'd be some kinda prodigy if you were smart enough to pick 'em out before you were even born!"

Chiyo laughed softly, but it was more loosening tension than actual mirth.

"Human humor is a subject that no Eddorian has ever understood," their guide commented. "I put much effort into that, though it is fortunately not overly affected by genetic factors. Do your peers feel that you have a strange sense of humor?"

"I guess you've seen to it that I have no peers," Chiyo answered, only a little shaky.

"That point of view could be defended. However, your circumstances may have changed recently. Our process is ever being refined." It turned in the air and blinked at them again, backpedaling at the same pace. "Is something amiss?"

"N…not in the least." She still looked upset, but was controlling herself admirably. To imagine yourself as the _product_ of some laboratory… Ayumu pressed close beside her.

–_you will kill Chiyo Mihama_-

_Busy! Shut up!!_

-_but you will. Just so you know._-

"Stoicism is another concept which eludes us." The Eddorian turned forward again. "Perhaps it would reassure you to know that the traits of your human parents are predominantly expressed. Yours was the first genotype that we had attempted to alter outside of this laboratory's controlled conditions, so more of your makeup was left to chance, as in nature."

Chiyo sagged again, not particularly reassured.

"The Brothers," Ayumu suddenly spoke up. "They were born here?"

"If 'born' is the proper term in Basic, then yes. Unfortunately, a combination of our inexperience and the Director's training methods produced beings of… disappointing cognitive ability. They were exceptional weapons, but nothing more."

_The Brothers?_ Chiyo mouthed to herself. Plural? Judging from the sickly maroon flicker she'd felt within Ayumu, it was likely the former Sithling had killed the others. And judging from the condition of the one Chiyo had encountered, it was probably a mercy to them.

"They might've turned out better if he wasn't so sadistic." Ayumu pointed out.

"Sadism as you understand the term does not exist on Eddore," the scientist said, coming to a halt by an arch that led to what seemed to be the station's bridge. "Though I will allow that he has certain tendencies for which that label could be considered appropriate. Perhaps he has learned it from his years among your people."

"Evacuate the station, Gharlane," a voice from within ordered. "And say your farewells, if you wish. You will never see 4-Orange again."

"As she has grown into a being that is far more than the sum of our work, I concede to you that her project designation is no longer an appropriate way to refer to her," Gharlane inclined himself in the air. "I will now see to the station's evacuation. Farewell, Chiyo Mihama."

Evacuation? Oh, yes, Nochichi knew what was coming. The two women came forward as a menagerie of flattened, varicolored monstrosities wafted by behind them, a few using one another's slipstreams to move faster. This colorful show made Ayumu wonder what Eddore looked like on its surface—perhaps it wasn't as dreadful as she'd been imagining?

Chiyo hit the archway as if it were a brick wall and stopped dead, trembling. "I'm—that--!" She started inching back, shaking her head. Something that looked like a pink panda in profile bounced off of her and tumbled away, unnoticed. "I… I can't go in there! Why didn't we sense…?"

"Hey, don't poop out now!" Ayumu tugged on her arm but she hung back like a recalcitrant horse. "C'mon! What gives?"

-_you will kill Luke Skywalker_-

_Wha- who?_

-_I'm just screwing with you. You're gonna kill Chiyo Mihama._-

The younger girl finally gave way and entered alongside her, looking worse with every step. The room was shaped like a vast clamshell, with bizarre Eddorian stations radiating out from a raised platform in the center. (Why would the elevation of the floor matter to levitating creatures? They never found out.) Just past it, the walls switched from the standard material to a clear, plastic-like stuff, admitting a view of the planet far below. And above the command platform…

Though he'd forgone his armor, the sable cloak still billowed about him windlessly. Darth Nochichi looked even more like a strange doodle now, all flat and orange (the same color as Chiyo's hair, Ayumu noticed), but because he was floating before her in reality and not in the pages of some adorable comic strip, his visage was one of unbelievable horror.

"Hello, Chiyo, Darth Mito." His voice lost something of its body without the filter, but nothing of its menace. "I'm so glad you both saw fit to come."

"That's not my name anymore," Ayumu corrected angrily. "What are you doing to Chiyo!?"

"I'm not doing anything to her."

"He isn't," Chiyo pulled herself up by the former Sith's shoulder. "It's… behind him, it's… ohgod…"

"You should surrender, Chiyo." Nochichi drifted lower, but didn't come towards them. "I am in your blood."

Hearing that seemed to stiffen her spine. "A human," she growled, pushing each word through whatever it was that troubled her so. "Is one of those rare creatures who can deny its blood."

"You look like you're gonna rolf," Ayumu murmured.

"Thanks for reminding me," Chiyo glanced sideways with strained humor. "Next time, wait till I'm not wearing a mask."

"Sorry."

"The genes we share still have a profound effect on you, Chiyo. Everything that I am is inside of you, for it is possible to recreate a being whole from even its tiniest part." Nochichi glowed happily purple. "And we had a whole arm to work with." He bobbed into the air to reveal…

-_you will kill Chiyo Mihama_-

_Shh._

The being had apparently been talking to him before they arrived and then stood patiently behind him, hidden by his cloak through their confrontation. It was a small human in black Sith robes, wearing a breathing mask much like their own. And behind the mask… Ayumu's eyes roved up over the figure, slowly widening. "No way…"

"Chiyo, Ayumu, I would like to introduce you to the clone Chiyyo."

-_was I right, or was I right?_-

_Shh!_

"This…!" Chiyo gasped as her opposite number stared down at her impassively. Now her angst was complete—not only was she a product, but she was apparently replaceable as well. The Prodigy wouldn't cooperate? No problem! They could just fax the procedure to Kurosawa and she could make as many Chiyos as she wanted! "This is…!"

"Exactly what I needed," Ayumu finished, smiling darkly. She stepped forward slowly, patting her friend's shoulder in passing. "Don't let it get to ya, Chiyo-chan. That thing isn't no substitute, an' everyone in the room knows it!" She leveled her lightsaber at Chiyyo, suddenly every bit an Imperial Noble demanding a duel of honor. "Homunculus! Have at you!"

"There's your predecessor," Nochichi said casually. "Remember what I told you and get to it."

Without reply, Chiyyo leapt to the attack. Ayumu made what seemed like a superfluous flourish with her saber as she approached, but when they collided, a triangular section of the floor gave out beneath her and they plunged out of sight.

"Ayumu!" Chiyo wailed. "What-!?"

_BLANG! _The section of deck finally landed far below, but neither combatant was still on it. Its echoes were swiftly drowned out by the buzz and crash of lightsabers at furious work, fading into the distance as they worked their way across the vast floor.

Chiyo made to jump after her, but then she thought of the effect the clone's presence had on her, that strange, painful mental interference. If she went after them, all it would do is screw up her companion's attempt to help her. _So that's how it has to be. Good luck, Ms. Ayumu._

"I wasn't expecting that either," Nochichi tilted to look down the hole. "These humans are full of surprises."

"I'm sure _I _surprised you," Chiyo said.

"Now and again, even if you aren't really…"

"I am."

"Stop pretending now," Nochichi commanded. "Face me."

Chiyo closed her eyes and pulled off the mask. A little shudder went through her body as it switched to Eddorian respiration, but the shock wasn't half as bad as she had expected. After a moment to get used to the air, she drew her lightsaber without igniting it. "So here we are, face to face. You've arranged quite a dramatic confrontation." Weirdly, the innocent quality Chiyo's voice had never quite lost made it sound like she was genuinely congratulating him. "What happens now?"

"Now, young Mihama…" Nochichi might have hesitated for an instant before purple lightning clawed out towards her. "You die!"

Far below and retreating across a cavernous cargo bay, Ayumu was beginning to figure out that she'd been expected. Chiyyo was able to dodge and deflect Force Shrieks, leading to a lot of howling wind through holes in the hull. She wouldn't be suckered by the fourth-dimension trick (when her saber started to pass through Ayumu, she'd _stopped_, and the former Sith only just managed to yank herself away in time.) Even the illusions, something she didn't normally bother to try in duels, weren't having any effect. Their minds, of course, were blank walls to one another's, though Chiyyo's barrier had an oily Eddorian sheen to it. Was that because she'd been trained by Nochichi, or was it a quality of the mind beyond?

-_you will kill Chiyo Mihama_-

_I'm working on it, darn it!_

Unfortunately, it was proving to be difficult. The clone bounded and skipped along with her, matching her step for step, raining a barrage of lightning-fast strokes on her with a short red lightsaber. Ayumu wove softly ahead of her, violet saber moving in unhurried arcs to catch each darting blow, waiting for her chance to—

-_you will kill Chiyo Mihama! What's taking so long?_-

--yeah, that.

She threw another shockwave just to get a moment to breathe, but when it washed uselessly over Chiyyo, the sturdy hull behind her blew violently into space. They both paused in surprise. That wasn't just the usual crumpling, it had--!

Ayumu had originally thought (or hoped, rather) that her Force Shriek making the substance Topocrine explode had just been a quirk, an esoteric little wrinkle to her powers that would have been all-too-fitting for her. Unfortunately, it seemed that Nochichi was right all along.

"**Do not restrain yourself, Darth Mito,**" he'd told her."**It is possible to change the wave's nature to make anything explode with deadly force. A great gift has been given to you… to hold the power of death incarnate, to destroy all matter and kill with a gesture! This is the power of the Force Shriek!**"

_But did ya have to be so dramatic about it?_ Ayumu sighed inwardly, even as she parried three strikes from as many directions. This new dimension to her abilities might turn out to be useful, but not so much to the matter at hand. Even if Chiyyo weren't able to block it, Ayumu probably couldn't bring herself to, say, shatter her bones or explode her brain on the spot. (Not that killing her any other way was much better, but… _ugh! _Just _ugh!_) So they continued the weary round, lost in time, hacking away with no resolution in sight.

Just as Ayumu started to imagine she was getting the hang of this fight, though, something metallic crashed into the side of her head and she was knocked tumbling. _Oh, great, now the stuff-flingin' starts, _she moaned inwardly, _why do I gotta suck at telekinesis so bad? _Crates and structural members and even parts of the hull were ripped out and flung at her, careening in from every direction.

Chiyyo stood with her hand out, eyes screwed shut in concentration, stock-still as she conducted the symphony of shrieking and clangoring "metal" (whatever it was that this station was made of—there was little practical difference) in its assault. From a distance, it would have looked like the cargo-bay itself were rearing up and trying to eat Ayumu.

The Baroness bounded lightly onto a twirling crate and then skipped to a flying pillar, running down its length and ducking what seemed to be an Eddorian toolbox. She jumped spinning from the pillar to skid backwards across the floor obliquely to Chiyyo, sweeping a volley of satanic staples from the air with her saber.

Five meters. She just had to close _five meters_…

Something small and very, very hard struck her solar plexus, hurling her back into the maelstrom with the wind knocked out of her. _No good!_ She crossed her arms before her, wincing as that first crate rushed up hungrily. _Oh, this is gonna hurt!_

Another desperate Force Shriek ballooned out from her in every direction and tore into the unnaturally flying debris. Had she managed to recreate the accident from earlier? She actually had to regain consciousness before she had her answer—the concussion of nearly a ton of exploding whatever-it-was put her out for a second or two.

Somehow she apprehended that she was still in the air, only just managing to land gracefully in the midst of the suddenly cleared cargo-bay. Chiyyo crouched some distance away, also dazed but recovering quickly. Dubious air continued to whistle out through the Swiss-cheese Ayumu had made of the hull over the past five minutes.

-_you will kill Chiyo Mihama_-

_Yes, I know. And don't you feel special for being right?_

They sprinted towards each other, zigging and zagging in an effort to surprise the other when they finally—Ayumu saw to it that they _didn't _collide again, leaping into the air and flinging one last Shriek into the ground beneath her. It burst right into Chiyyo's face, staggered her for just an instant… and the violet lightsaber flicked down from above and lightly dabbed into the back of her head.

Desperate for closure and to make sure Chiyyo wouldn't suffer, Ayumu landed heavily over her and drove the lightsaber down through the clone's chest as though it were Excalibur, trying to drown her revulsion and guilt in the epic flavor of the moment. No dice.

-_about damn time_- And so Yukari's Last Command departed to pester someone else.

Ayumu stumbled back from her foe and sat down heavily, feeling empty and weak. That wind was getting pretty strong… would she be sucked out into space now? More importantly, did she care?

Yeah, she probably did. Shoot.

In spite of what she'd said earlier, Ayumu had to wonder just how much of a person Chiyyo had been. That barrier… what had lived behind it? Could they have reconciled? Should she have tried parleying? Maybe Chiyyo's mind had just been controlled by evil alien pigtails? Had she really killed… had she killed a real Chiyo? The unbelievable violence of their fight had kept Ayumu from doing any more than defending herself, unable even to spare the breath to speak, but now that it was over she was free to second-guess.

She lifted her remote and ordered _Dream Knife _to come to a gap in the hull; somehow, as though by the reassurance of something outside of herself, she was confident that Chiyo—the real one, damn it!—wouldn't need any more help. "Y'sure don't," she told the corpse sadly. "Oh… why am I so confuzzled?"

If she could have seen Chiyo, though, she would have forgotten her confidence in an instant. The prodigy crouched, breath hissing angrily through her teeth, blood running from the corner of her mouth, robes scorched and smoking in several places where her guard had failed. The air between her and Nochichi was filled with a vaguely shimmering storm of the Force, two unfiltered wills pressing against one another in the material world. Apart from the occasional Force Lightning attempt by the Sith Lord, their final duel wasn't really much to look at.

"You're already going?" Nochichi asked. "I thought you'd be tougher than _this_."

Chiyo's concentration flickered and she had to throw herself sideways to avoid an attack that seemed to be a Force Sports Utility Vehicle, which rolled invisibly on and flattened out a wide swath of destruction before hitting the wall with a soft little _tunk!_ Before Nochichi could fix on her new location, Chiyo drew her blaster and fired a volley into him—which just ricocheted away and dug smoking craters in the bridge all around them.

"What was _that?_ Blasters aren't Jedi weapons!"

Chiyo just tossed the gun aside, rising from her crouch and resting her hands on her knees. Now was _not _the time for a philosophical debate, but she appreciated the breather. "Stand up straight," Nochichi snapped, but she ignored him. Instead, she reached out and the lightsaber swept up into her hand. _Snap-hiss!_ Ayumu's red blade sprang to life, its surface rippling softly. Chiyo could feel some kind of fluid sloshing inside of its handle--what had inspired _this _design?

Nochichi squinted at her. "Don't tell me you've come to the True Force." Apparently, this was the Eddorian name for the Dark Side. "After your histrionics on Bespin, that would be too funny."

"You presume too much," she finally rejoined between gasps. "Why should a red blade make me a Sith?"

"That's why I carried one. It was a silly weapon, but an effective symbol. You seem to be the type who's careful with symbols, so I have to wonder about this one."

Chiyo changed tacks. "Why do you bother being a Sith? Why interfere with the—no, with _us_ humans?"

"Long ago, before the birth of any man who now lives, I swore my allegiance to Clan Tanizaki. But honestly, that's none of your frickin' business."

"And you know that Empress Yukari is imprisoned and disgraced?"

"Unimportant. When Chiyyo and I return, we'll free Yukari, place her at the head of Empire once more and crush the Rebellion." Both had felt the clone's death—one could only assume that he planned to make a Chiyyyo.

"I can't let that happen."

"But you can't stop it. You should have killed Yukari when you had the chance—but then, you Jedi can never stir yourselves to do what is necessary."

"What is necessary…"

"Just look at you. You've fit that ridiculous Jedi mold to a T, charging heroically all the way to Eddore to face me on the field of Glory and Honor. Pah!" Nochichi glowed with swirling colors, but Chiyo couldn't tell what they meant. "I had hoped you might be a little different, but in the end you're just as stupid as your predecessors."

"Now, I don't think it's fair to call them stupid." Chiyo reached into her pocket and lowered the crimson lightsaber. What was that about a philosophical debate? "But Master Kamineko and his students… they clung to an idealized image of the ancient Jedi."

"Is that so."

_Aha,_ Chiyo noted without any particular pleasure, _He thinks he sees an opening to draw me to the Dark Side. His guard is lowering._ "From what I've gathered, I'm supposed to come here and face you honorably, doing nothing to compromise myself as a Jedi, and sow the seeds of your eventual defeat with my death. It's what poor Ms. Sakaki did, though I'm sure it wasn't her first plan."

"And it seems that that is what you've done."

"I don't know why, perhaps it's from having grown up on Tatooine, but I feel a certain need to be more… _practical_ than that. With all the death and suffering you would cause before your fall, I don't consider dying heroically now to be an acceptable option. I don't want to be like the Jedi who obliterated Yavin IV and swept away its whole civilization just to kill one man, but I'd certainly like to see more good for my efforts than Master Yotsuba did that day." She finally withdrew her hand, showing him a remote with two buttons.

"What's that?" Nochichi asked.

"My contribution to Jedi philosophy," she answered sadly. "I'm about to do something very nasty."

She pressed the first button, and Nochichi's starfighter silently blew apart outside. He turned in the air to watch debris skip off of the bridge viewports, unconcerned. "How did you arrange that?"

"Mr. Matsuyama made me some stealth gear for a spacesuit based on his work with your ship's sensors…"

"No stealth gear could shield you from the Force!"

"I guess you've never heard of the ysalimir." She noticed his color change slightly. "Or perhaps you have. I'm sorry."

"I suppose that explains why you were so surprised by your new sister, too. So you're trying to defeat me with treacherously placed explosives? That's not very Jedi-like. Looks like you take after me a little better than I thought."

"I knew you'd enjoy that," she agreed. "But you're speaking as though carving you in two with this lightsaber would be somehow more moral or palatable."

"Some would say. That's why you tried to face me before setting those off. I assume there's a second bomb?"

"Yes, you haven't moved from that spot in the past two hours," Chiyo replied, wincing as her arm broke in three places and the remote was ripped from her hand. But that was okay; she hadn't counted on being able to press the button anyway. Instead, she reached out through the Force and squeezed the remote's interior, completing its circuit.

"Ha-!" Nochichi started. It should've been more thunderous, but since they lost most of their atmosphere in the explosion, the sound of his death was just a sharp _pop!_

* * *

It was another overcast day, the sky filled end-to-end with good omens for Chiyo to enjoy. Even though it had been years since she'd last seen Tattooine, it still felt like a rare joy to be surrounded on all sides by cool, pleasant water. At the moment, she sat on a smooth rock in the center of a lake, attempting to meditate to the soft lapping of black waves.

She was no longer a child, but it would be difficult to tell for some time yet. Though Chiyo had gained a few centimeters since the fall of the Empress, she was still a small woman with the spry, slender limbs and bright (albeit stained) eye of youth. Her hair was cut short, lofting naturally into a wild, sprightly style that wasn't exactly becoming of the first new Jedi Master. Dark, sandy robes pooled around her, that peculiar quality of hers making them seem too large even though they'd been custom-tailored.

The forests of Yavin IV (they were at a high-enough latitude that the term "jungle" wouldn't have fit) stretched out endlessly in every direction, still and cool in the early evening. Diurnal creatures were finding their beds while their nocturnal cousins were just stirring; soon enough the world would become a cacophony again. The only creatures that moved about her now were tall, graceful, black birds, silent except for the occasional soft _kaloon!_

She identified with them for some reason.

Chiyo's head slowly dipped, a troubled cast stealing over her features. Sometimes, with no apparent cause or warning, bad memories crept back to disturb her. They had portent now and again, but most often not—they were just the relentless assault of a conscience that refused to let her forget her failings.

But her troubled expression was instantly swallowed by an impish smile as she heard a faint _splaf-splaf-splaf-splaf!_ approaching. It was the sound of impossibly light feet slapping across the water's surface, and that whistling she heard was— _CRACK!_ Practice swords crossed over her head as Ayumu landed on the stone next to her.

In the crazed, exhilarating few seconds that followed, wooden blades flashed all around them and Chiyo's only impression of her sparring partner was of fluttering charcoal sleeves and flowery perfume. Before her conscious mind even fully realized what was happening, Ayumu's sword rested lightly against her throat and the match was over. "You were really out of it," she commented, smiling eyes removing any bite the assessment might have had.

"Sorry," Chiyo grinned back as they lowered their _bokken _and backed away as far as the cramped quarters would let her. "You caught me at a bad moment."

"You've been having those a lot, lately," Ayumu agreed, concerned. She didn't stand much taller than before, but her posture made her seem so. She was wrapped elegantly in what we in this galaxy would call a dark gray kimono, thick dark hair flowing nearly to her waist and her bare feet curving gracefully over the rock's surface. Even flushed and short of breath, her bearing was serene and collected.

"It's hard sometimes." Chiyo admitted. "I just… caught myself thinking about Gantoris again. And that got me thinking about other students who've been swayed and tempted… and the times I'vefaltered… and then what Nochichi said about taking after him…"

"That jerk never said _anything_ worthwhile," Ayumu cut in positively. "Have ya noticed you always have these worrywart attacks when we're here on Yavin?"

"Yes, but—oh my goodness! Why did you-?" Chiyo looked her up and down, shocked. "We-we shouldn't be sparring while you're in… your condition!"

"Why?" Ayumu rested a hand on her belly. There wasn't much difference in her build yet, but then, it hadn't been very long. "The doctor said exercise would be good for him."

"_Moderate _exercise!" Chiyo cried, waving her arms.

Ayumu gave her The Eybrow. "What do you call this?"

"Moderate-?" Chiyo blinked. Hmm… come to think of it, they _hadn't _been flailing away with the same energy they normally did. She would have attributed it to Ayumu mellowing in her age, but to be honest, if Ayumu mellowed any further, she'd be dead. "But, but what if I accidentally hit-?"

"You wouldn't." This was said without a doubt; while Ayumu's "danger sense" had always been unusually acute, where her child was concerned it became positively godlike. Further, even if something managed to surprise her (as things did, occasionally) there was still the fourth-dimension trick—she couldn't even catch a newspaper on her stomach without her body involuntarily flickering out of normal spacetime to avoid it. "I'm an impenetrable fortress." She smirked. "Though I guess I can't say I'm _impregnable_…"

Her friend completely missed the joke. "Your reflexes are amazing, but-!"

"I'm wearin' a personal shield, too."

"…oh." Chiyo lowered her hands.

"We're connected," Ayumu continued, sobered. She moved her hand in a slow circle. "I just… it's _impossible _for me to let anything happen to him. D'ya see? We were fine."

"If you're… if you're sure…" Chiyo gazed at her for a long moment, then spread her hands. "You win. But please be careful, Ms. Ayumu."

"Always, Chiyo-chan." She pushed the younger woman gently. "Y'know, it sounds like you need a break. Come away with me and camp in the woods for the night. I know the perfect spot!"

"I'd love to, but I can't leave the students." Chiyo started, glancing back in the direction of their campsite. The Jedi Academy was still a small, informal group, moving between places as their need or that of the Republic dictated. Yavin IV was one of the sites under consideration for a permanent home, but for whatever reason, some of their number had a bad feeling about it. A few (especially the younger students) even refused to enter any of the Masassi temples outright.

"'Course you can!" Ayumu threw an arm over her shoulder. "I left Gary in charge."

"Who?"

"Whatsisface… the guy that's always picking arguments with you." It was only natural the Baroness had a hard time with his name. She didn't actually spend a lot of time with the students, instead serving as their aunt—she just showed up every now and then to commiserate with them about Chiyo, exclaim over their progress and maybe bring luxuries that they didn't have time for otherwise. She didn't have it in her to be a stern taskmistress.

"Oh. His name is Keiran Halcyon."

"Suuuure, it is," Ayumu smiled slyly. She had a way with assumed names. "But anyway, he looks like his name is 'Gary Stu' to me, so I'm just going to call him Gary. I told him you might not be coming back tonight, and if not, then he was the boss until you got back."

"But Miura…"

"Won't admit to anyone how scared she is, and the others are there for her. C'mon, Chiyo-chan!" This was how it always was. Though to look at them you'd think just the opposite, Chiyo was the Academy's force for Order, while Ayumu was a gentle, playful tug towards Chaos. "At least come and see the place I picked."

"Well…" Chiyo sighed heavily. "Okay, I'll take a loo-_aieee!_" One of Ayumu's arms looped under hers and she was jerked along with the Baroness's sprint across the water, flailing helplessly. _Splaf-splaf-splaf-splaf!_ "Hey!" the great Jedi Master protested as she was deposited on the shore. "Can't you leave me with at least a _little_ dignity?"

"Nope," Ayumu shook her head, giggling. "None."

Chiyo struggled to keep a straight face. "But you just manhandled your Master! You're not supposed to _do _that!"

"Ah, keeps ya from getting uppity."

"Uppity…?" Chiyo stared at her for a few seconds, lower lip trembling, then finally burst into gales of laughter.

Ayumu chuckled as well, enjoying the sound. "Been too long since I've heard that laugh… here, it's not too far. And I promise not to carry you this time!"

"Hmph." Cool rain started coming down as they set out together, lightening Chiyo's mood yet further. "How is it you're able to cheer me up so well?"

"Oh, it's not so tough." Ayumu glanced at her sideways. "You're not too complicated when you get down to it."

"Oh?"

"Don't be like that. It's not like I said you were stupid or anything…" After all, if anyone understood the distinction between "simple" and "stupid," it would be Ayumu. "Oh, and long as you're still in a good mood, I'll tell you I'm taking the Three Musketeers with me to Corellia."

"To Corellia?" There wasn't really much Chiyo could say against that. The Musketeers were an inseparable trio of students who shared a faint darkness in their hearts and an unfaltering devotion to Ayumu as a teacher and friend: Ena Ayase, unwilling heiress to a legendary dynasty of assassins, Michiko Kimura, daughter of the late, unlamented Grand Moff, and Miura Hayasaka, who was the most scarred of the three but refused to tell anyone what had hurt her so. Their skills developed in fits and starts, mainly timed to Ayumu's visits.

"Yes, ma'am," Ayumu tilted her head back as the rain started to beat down harder. "General Takino and I will introduce them to diplomacy, and I'll want 'em to do some running around for me, anyway. I _am_ a pregnant woman, after all."

Chiyo couldn't keep herself from grinning at that. "A pregnant woman who ambushes Jedi and beats them up for fun."

"Hey, I'm practically bedridden! The trip'll do them good, anyway. I don't think they like it here."

"Especially Miura. She…" Chiyo looked troubled again. "Sometimes she actually seems to be sensing something that we can't. I hope…"

"Don't worry about that!" Ayumu swatted the back of her head. "It's your one night vacation!"

"But… okay." Chiyo shook her head rapidly. "We're all watching out for her anyway. I don't have to be there personally. If anything happens, just for tonight, Keiran will manage. If it's bad enough, he'll call for us." She took a deep breath. "Okay."

"That's the spirit! It's not so hard, is it?"

Chiyo halted, gaping. "Wait… _General _Takino?"

"Told ya she could do anything she put her mind to!"

"Whoa…" General Tomo Takino… now _there_ was a thought worth worrying about. They started off again. "Wh-when did this happen? As I recall, she wasn't even an official member of the armed forces!"

"Convolutions o' fate, I guess. Got her Generalship for fixing this big mess over a planet called Dathomir and some guy with an unpronounceable name building a Super Star Destroyer… ooh, and a these people who call themselves 'Force Witches.' Think we should check it out some time?"

Chiyo didn't even hear that last part. "You mean to say that Ms. Tomo played a large enough role in defeating Warlord Zsinj that she got a Generalship for it? From _scratch?_"

"Yup. Even told the guy to 'kiss her Wookie,' whatever that means."

"That's incredible! And I'm sure Ms. Kagura just _loves_ the competition, too."

"Yup, they're generals together, now." Ayumu was through the phase where she'd wilted every time somebody mentioned the soldier. Kagura naturally had a hard time forgiving her for letting Osaka fall out of under them and fighting against the men under her command; things would probably never be quite right between them. "Ah, we're here! Take a look, Chiyo-chan, isn't this perfect?"

It was certainly a very nice spot. They stood in a small clearing cleft by a shallow river, ringed in by slender trees that let the emerging sun through prettily. The ground beneath them was amazingly bright green for the latitude—kneeling, Chiyo saw that it was covered with soft, springy four-leaf clovers. "It's… so peaceful here," she said wonderingly. A feeling of contentment and optimism welled up around them, banishing the shadows that seemed to cover the rest of Yavin IV. "I've never felt a place like this before."

"Ohh…" Ayumu lay down on her side heavily. "I already feel all bloated and heavy. It hasn't even been a month yet and I don't think I can get up."

"I'm sorry… you seemed nimble enough earlier, though."

"It just hit me. And now I want pickles, great… had to get the pickle craving on a remote jungle moon…"

Chiyo just laughed. She was starting to get the hang of it again.

"Yeah, _you _can laugh at me. Just wait till it's your turn." Ayumu curled slightly. "So I was thinkin' of naming him after you."

"Umm… that's very sweet, Ms. Ayumu, but Chiyo is a girl's name. Are you sure…?"

"So he'll grow up tough." Ayumu giggled. "Nah, you're right. That'd be pretty mean."

Chiyo lay down and watched the clouds as they rolled by, finally revealing the sun again. "Thanks for making me take this break," she said finally. "I don't think I was ready to start taking on students when I did. It's just so stressful…"

"I think it's turning out all right."

"I don't know." The diminutive Jedi suddenly smiled. "But sitting here it doesn't seem all that bad. Even… even if I'm not strong enough, the Jedi Order has a life of its own now, you know? The idea is strong again. If I fell in battle or to the… well, there would still be Jedi, and they would still learn and grow and be strong."

"Yeah…" Ayumu propped herself up one elbow. "Isn't that funny? I was kinda down, too, but this place perked me right up."

"It's almost as if there's a benevolent… oh!" Chiyo sat bolt upright. "I just remembered! When Exar Kun killed Master Yotsuba, even he felt she deserved a proper burial. You don't suppose this is the spot…?"

Ayumu ran her fingers through the clovers. "It just could be."

Chiyo stood slowly and looked around. "You know, we passed a few large clearings on the way here… maybe we could build the Academy around this spot! If the campus is kept simple (and it will be), we wouldn't even have to cut down any of the forest! Hmm, but I don't think we should put anything in this particular clearing, though…"

"Not even a marker? Memorial? Concession stand?"

"Not even," Chiyo affirmed. "These clovers are all the marker she would want. But this… this is absolutely perfect! I mean, it has a link to Jedi history, it's isolated from the war, we're surrounded by life and there's all kinds of interesting sites to investigate, and…!"

"You're so cute when you get excited," Ayumu commented. "Like a little puppy!"

Chiyo's momentum was suddenly completely shot. Her arms dropped to her sides and she fixed her old friend with a long, withering look. "Ugh… why did you have to go and say that?"

"Because I can't bear the thought of you being able to take yourself seriously? That's my best guess."

Chiyo sighed and sat down, deflated. "Well, it'll be great, anyway. At least until we figure out what that malign presence in the temples is all about."

Ayumu looked up apologetically. "I didn't wreck it for you, did I?"

"Mm… no, I'm still pretty enthused. In fact, I should probably calm down a…"

"_Oh!_ He kicked!"

"Um, your child? He, uh…" Chiyo floundered. "I mean, I don't think he has legs yet."

"No, no, no, not like that… c'mere and listen." At her insistent beckoning, her friend came over and knelt next to her, listening carefully. Ayumu added, "Not really kicking, that's just what I call it. Not so much a sound, neither. More of a… it's a Force thingy you feel like it's a sound, yeah?"

"I'm sorry, Ms. Ayumu, I don't…" Chiyo started after a few seconds, but then suddenly jolted with surprise. She felt it! It gave her the sense of a very faint sound, a little silvery "cheep!" Perhaps it wasn't quite the voice of a sentient mind, but rather that of a presence which would, in due time, become one. "Ooh! I heard him!" she squealed, suddenly not caring _how_ cute she was being. "Oh, wow! He's so… wow!"

"And t'think," Ayumu said languidly, curling up again, "When he's born, there'll be an Academy all ready for him, and a whole new crop of Jedi defendin' the galaxy… Chiyo-chan, do you even realize how great you've done, these past few years? You brought the Jedi back! Now whatever happens, we'll be up to it, y'know? For the first time, I… I feel good about the future, ours an' everyone's. I feel like everything's gonna be okay."

Normally, Chiyo would have felt constrained to say something modest or caution Ayumu against getting her hopes up about the academy… but now, in this spot, with the bright, confident spirit of Yotsuba rising all around her, all she could do was agree.

**Nunquam Finis**


End file.
